SENATOR Imee Marcos believes it is better to buy rice from local farmers right now.
She said many of the provinces in the country sell rice at P25 per kilo.
Senator Marcos said the National Food Authority (NFA) should buy them first before considering importation as a solution.
“Scratch first. There are many more in Mindanao. There are many more in Nueva Ecija. The biofertilizer, the price of their produce is low. At P25. Why not buy that first?” according to Senator Imee Marcos, Republic of the Philippines.
“As far as I know, the NFA, seventy-five, 75%, 3/4 of their budget remains intact. They haven’t bought it yet. When will they buy it?” Sen. Marcos added.
Rice importation affects local farmers— Sen. Marcos
Senator Marcos said the local farmers will be at a disadvantage if the government chooses to import rice.
The senator explained that if imported rice comes in, the price of local rice will be lower, and it will affect local farmers.
“Our farmers are afraid that when the imported [rice products] come in, it will overlap the new harvest because the field will be harvested in a week. By the third week of September, all through October. That’s the major first harvest,” she said.
Sen. Marcos: importing rice is not sustainable
Senator Marcos added that the importation is not sustainable, and neither are subsidies.
“Importation is not sustainable, and neither are subsidies. But at the end of the day, we have to invest in our countryside finally so that we can become competitive and achieve food security,” Sen. Marcos.
Authorities strictly enforce President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.‘s Executive Order (EO) 39, in which the price ceiling is implemented at P41 per kilo for regular-milled rice and P45 per kilo for well-milled rice.
The government has already distributed financial assistance to the affected rice retailers.
