A House mega panel is eyeing a further reduction in the current P35 cost of rice being sold at selected local government units (LGUs), stressing the crucial need for long-term affordability rather than a mere stopgap solution.

Quezon Rep. Mark Enverga, co-chair of the House Quinta Committee tasked with ensuring food security, acknowledged the government’s ongoing efforts to make the staple grain accessible to all — especially to the underprivileged — by flooding markets with the National Food Authority’s (NFA) buffer stock, pegged at P33 to P35 per kilo, through the declaration of a food security emergency.

However, he pointed out that the country cannot heavily rely on a temporary solution, given that it could be lifted anytime once an extraordinary increase in rice prices is stabilized.

“The battle for cheap rice does not end with the current price drop. We must ensure that the steps we are taking now are long-term,” Enverga, chair of the House Committee on Agriculture and Food, said in Filipino on Sunday.

The food security emergency has been in effect for a month now, with LGUs in Metro Manila selling rice at P1,650 per sack or P33 per kilo. Rice retailers can sell it to consumers for up to P35 per kilo as advised by authorities.

The Palace intends to slightly decrease the current cost of rice to P35 to alleviate the plight of financially challenged individuals.

A food security emergency may only be declared if there is a supply shortage or an extraordinary increase in the cost of rice, pursuant to the amended Rice Tariffication Law (RTL).

Once enforced, the NFA — which has been restricted from importing and selling rice directly to the public — will be allowed to release its buffer stocks to stabilize the cost of rice in areas with spiking retail prices.

NFA rice — previously sold for as low as P27 per kilo — was much cheaper than imported rice and used to dominate markets nationwide.

Supply pullout

However, NFA supplies were pulled out following the enactment of the RTL in February 2019 during the Duterte administration.

The law restricted the NFA’s function to buffering the stocking of palay for calamities and abolished the agency’s powers to regulate the rice sector, license market players, inspect warehouses, track stock movements, and stabilize prices while liberalizing rice importation.

The House of Representatives had insisted that allowing the NFA to reenter the domestic rice market would drive down skyrocketing rice prices by increasing competition with commercial traders.

This provision, however, was not included in the amended RTL passed in December last year.

According to Enverga, the instability of the current low rice prices will not significantly alleviate the plight of consumers unless there is an aggressive effort to eliminate cartels and hoarders, who are mainly responsible for the artificial inflation or manipulation of rice prices.

“The price of rice has decreased in the international market, the tariff has also been reduced, but the price is still high,” he lamented.

Rice prices remain drastically high despite the enforcement in July last year of Executive Order 62 — which reduced the tariff on rice imports from 35 percent to 15 percent — as well as declining global rice costs and the reported excess supply in the country.

P52-P61 per kilo

Government data showed that in February, imported special rice ranged from P52 to P61 per kilo, while premium varieties were pegged at P51 to P58 per kilo.

Meanwhile, local special rice ranged from P55 to P63 per kilo, while premium varieties ranged from P50 to P57 per kilo.

These figures are still far from President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s target of lowering the price of rice to P20 per kilogram.

Members of the Quinta Committee believe that rice importers are colluding with traders, resulting in persistently high rice prices.

Enverga suggested that the Department of Trade and Industry establish a suggested retail price (SRP) formula for rice, similar to other essential commodities, to prevent traders from inflating prices and profiting at consumers’ expense.

Under this system, importers would be required to display the SRP on rice packaging, while the Bureau of Customs would assess tariffs based on declared purchase costs, wholesale prices, and the SRP.