LOADING RICE
LOOK: Contracted laborers load sacks of rice along Dagupan Street in Manila on Monday, 9 September 2024. Farmers' groups argue that the recent increase in the price of rice from Vietnam, which now stands at $620 per metric ton, has made the anticipated P7 per kilo decrease in rice prices for October unattainable. They point out that the price of rice has risen by $40 from $580 per metric ton. According to Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura Chair Rosendo So, Executive Order 62, signed on 20 June, 2024, aimed at reducing tariffs on rice, has primarily benefited Vietnamese farmers, who raised their prices following the imposition of a 15% duty on imported grain.