The Department of Agriculture (DA) announced on Wednesday that it will launch the “Rice-for-All” program on Thursday and will sell rice at P45 a kilo at select Kadiwa centers nationwide.

DA Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said the price under the Rice-for-All program is subject to change based on market fluctuations but will always be lower than retail prices.

“President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. wants to ensure that every Filipino has access to affordable food during these trying times. In line with this, we will continue to expand the Kadiwa network and make available more basic goods to the general public,” Laurel said.

The DA will sell up to 25 kilos of well-milled rice per person daily at the initial four Kadiwa outlets in Taguig City, Manila, Malabon and Caloocan.

Meantime, Assistant Secretary Arnel de Mesa said the program will complement the ongoing Program 29, which sells aging but safe rice for P29 a kilo.

“The main objective of this Rice for All program is to have rice available that is cheaper. This is one of the initiatives of our government to lower the impact of food items [due to] inflation, and of course it will also pull down the price in the market,” De Mesa said.

Program 29 will expand to Sta. Rosa City in Laguna and Antipolo City in Rizal, bringing the total number of outlets to 19.