Spike in rice prices A vendor scoops rice at a Manila market as concerns grow over a 60-day rice import suspension starting 1 September. Stakeholders warned the ban could increase retail rice prices, citing reduced imported supply and rising local palay prices.
Photograph by john carlo magallon for DAILY TRIBUNE
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s suspension of rice imports for 60 days starting 1 September 2025 may result in a P1 or P2 increase in rice retail price, the Philippine Rice Industry Stakeholders Movement (PRISM) said Saturday.
PRISM lead convenor Rowena Sadicon said that when imported rice is reduced, the supply of local rice will increase.
“We expect the price to increase... It’s already having an effect. The price of palay has increased,” Sadicon said, adding that the effect is that the price of palay will increase for the farmers.
“It will increase by about P1 to P2 (per kilo)… Most likely, the retail price of rice will also increase by P1 to P2,” Sadicon explained.
The Federation of Free Farmers (FFF), on the other hand, criticized the ‘’government’s delay’’ in imposing safeguards for local rice farmers, saying that many of them have been pushed into debt, with some questioning whether it is still worth planting at all.
The move protects tillers
Sadicon said President Marcos Jr. issued the order to protect farmers reeling from low palay prices during the harvest season, which is currently underway.
“There are two things that need to be understood... Our farmers are the reason why this was done. The impact this has on us is on the supply chain,” she said.
The move could also further pressure global prices as the top buyer of the grain pulls back from the market.
The announcement comes after Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. pushed for a temporary halt in imports of the national staple, as well as an increase in rice import tariffs.
Tiu Laurel said an influx of imported rice is hurting local producers and may force millers to shut operations.
The Philippines was projected to buy 5.4 million tons of rice in the 2025-26 season, topping purchases from other major importers like Vietnam and Nigeria, the US Department of Agriculture forecast in July.
On 6 August, Agriculture Assistant Secretary Arnel de Mesa said the 60-day suspension period covers the country’s peak harvest season, when domestic supplies are adequate.
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