The National Food Authority (NFA) said Thursday it will no longer rebag palay (unhusked rice) sourced from local farmers, which they said will save them money and enable them to buy more rice.

“We signed an order where our farmers can sell their rice with their own sack. We have studied this for a long time, and it's born out of the meeting,” NFA administrator Larry Lacson said in a press briefing at Quezon City.

He said that various farmer groups nationwide said that their sale is slow because their rice is still being rebagged.

This wet season harvest, the government aims to buy over 20 percent, or around 1.3 million bags, of palay bagged by farmers out of its 6.4 million 50-kilo bags target.

“We will no longer rebag. So the NFA will not spend money here. And at the same time, the handling cost will be reduced,” Lacson said.

“The biggest benefit here is that our farmers will not have to wait long. So once this is successful this wet season, we will continue this,” he added, saying that this move will generate P215 potential savings, eyed to be utilized to buy an additional 7,700 metric tons of palay at an average price of P28 a kilo.

The decision was finalized at the agency’s national planning conference held in Dumaguete City last September.

Shift to solar power

In another project, the Agriculture attached corporation signed a memorandum of agreement with state-owned Philippine National Oil Co. for the implementation of its rooftop solar photovoltaic system in its Central Office in Quezon City.

This is seen to cut down on electricity costs and improve the office’s overall energy management.

Under the agreement, NFA will lease a 100 kilowatt-peak solar PV system, which is seen to substantially lower its electricity expenses.