Speaker sees rice prices going down to P29 to P34 per kilo in August

Rice prices in the country could go down to P29 to 34 per kilo by August, House Speaker Martin Romualdez said Monday.

Romualdez made the announcement in the aftermath of his meeting with Philippine Rice Industry Stakeholders Movement (PRISM) founder and lead convenor Rowena Sadicon and co-founder Orly Manuntag, also the spokesperson of Grain Retailers Confederation of the Philippines (GRECON), saying the two organizations committed to reduce rice prices in the aftermath of the issuance of Executive Order 62 reducing tariff rates on imported rice from 35% to 15%. 

Romualdez said that initially, well milled rice will go down to P45 to 46 per kilo while premium rice will be at P47 to 48 per kilo in July before the ideal price of P29 to 34 per kilo is reached by August, given that the government has allocated a huge part of national budget to irrigation projects on top of reduced tariff rate for imports.

“Here in Metro Manila, rest assured. the reduced prices will be on the ground at P45 range. We are committed to this, and they [retailers, wholesalers, importers, rice millers] are committed to pass on savings [out of reduced rice prices] to consumers,” he said.

“Then you add our long term programs with the National Irrigation Administration (NIA), we are anticipating that NIA could bring to the table P29 per kilo by August. We have budget allocation [towards reaching this amount], government plans are being implemented. Hindi ito drawing,” he added.

(This is not written in the sand.)

Sadicon, for her part, appealed to rice exporting countries not to use reduced rice tariffs to gain unfair advantage.

“Our commitment is that gusto namin makiisa and at the same time, we also appeal to exporting countries not the take advantage of the price para hindi po  masayang,” Sadicon said.

Likewise, the Speaker and House appropriations panel chairperson Zaldy Co told farmers that government support to improve their productivity will continue, as there are sufficient revenues to implement these programs. 

Co said that the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF) item provided under the Rice Tariffication law alone has a P22-billion funding for aiding farmers, including for increasing their yield.

"We always take care of our farmers," Romualdez added.

Acting Administrator Larry Lacson of the National Food Authority (NFA), for his part, said the NFA continues to purchase rice from local farmers at competitive prices of P29 to P31 per kilo to cushion any possible adverse impact of cheaper imports. — BM, GMA Integrated News