The Department of Agriculture has suggested a unique gift idea for loved ones this Valentine’s Day: rice instead of flowers.

On the sidelines of the Palace briefing on Tuesday, DA Undersecretary for Operations Roger Navarro emphasized the practicality and symbolism of rice as a gift.

He pointed out that rice holds both sustenance and sentiment, unlike purely ornamental flowers.

“What we should give on Valentine’s Day to our loved ones: rice, not flowers because you can’t eat those,” Navarro told Palace reporters.

“(Some flowers) are also prickly because roses have thorns. But rice is sweet. More rice!” Navarro added.

Prices of flowers vs rice

For context, the price of flowers increased by up to 100 percent in a flower shop at Farmer’s Garden in Cubao a day before Valentine’s Day.

As of Tuesday, the average price of one rose stem was P150, twice the P75 it used to cost. A dozen roses cost P1,500 and a half dozen cost P800.

One tulip is P500, also twice the P250 it was worth before.

Meanwhile, government data showed the average wholesale price of regular milled rice stood at P46.60 per kilo as of January 2024, marking a 1.7-percent increase from December’s P45.83 per kilo.

This was a 32.7 percent rise from the previous year, when the average price was P35.11 per kilo in January 2023.