Philippines’ Agriculture Department Advocates NFA’s Return to Rice Trading to Stabilize Prices

QUEZON CITY – The Department of Agriculture (DA) has advocated for the reinstatement of the National Food Authority’s (NFA) ability to purchase and sell rice as a strategy to stabilize rice prices when they spike too high. This proposal was highlighted during a news forum in Quezon City on Saturday.

According to Philippines News Agency, the move would amend the Rice Tariffication Law (RTL), providing a crucial alternative to imposing price caps, which could have long-term negative economic effects. “We don’t want those kinds of measures because price caps can be good at the beginning, but they could have negative economic impacts on our country in the long term,” de Mesa stated. He further explained that enabling the NFA to intervene in the market would yield quicker results.

De Mesa mentioned that the rice sold by the NFA would be of good quality and priced lower than the current market rates for well-milled rice, which range between PHP 48 to PHP 53. “Previously, we could provide it at PHP 27. While we’re not expecting prices that low, we anticipate them to be considerably lower than the current market price,” he noted.

The proposed amendment would allow the NFA to directly intervene and distribute rice to retail outlets, enhancing market stability and accessibility. Currently, the NFA is primarily tasked with maintaining buffer stocks for emergencies and is restricted to purchasing only two types of produce from local farmers—fresh palay at PHP 19 to PHP 23, and clean and dry palay at PHP 23 to PHP 30.

De Mesa also highlighted that allowing the NFA to purchase rice directly would reduce costs associated with drying and milling, making it easier to maintain and distribute rice. He reassured that this measure would be implemented only when there are significant supply or pricing issues, affirming that the NFA’s primary role of purchasing palay from farmers remains unchanged.