Marcos to order emergency palay procurement as prices crash

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is preparing to issue an executive order authorizing the emergency procurement of palay to stabilize farm-gate prices and shield farmers from steep losses caused by oversupply and weather disruptions, Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel Jr. said Monday.

The plan follows the government’s two-month rice import ban imposed on 1 September, which initially boosted palay prices to about ₱14 per kilo from ₱8 to ₱10. Prices have since slid back to pre-ban levels, with reports of wet palay selling for as low as ₱6 per kilo in Northern Luzon due to rains and flooding.

“This is quite alarming. Over the weekend, everyone in the DA has been at work. I was with President Marcos in Northern Luzon, and these are the decisions that have been made,” Tiu Laurel said during the 2026 budget deliberations in the House of Representatives.

Key measures under review include extending the rice import ban by at least 30 days, potentially until the end of the year; setting a palay floor price; emergency purchases by the National Food Authority (NFA), which is planning to buy wet palay at ₱17 per kilo; and tariff adjustments, including a possible hike from the current 15 percent once the import ban is lifted.

Other proposals involve restricting government agencies and local governments from buying imported rice and allowing the NFA to expand storage by renting private warehouses.

Tiu Laurel, who also chairs the NFA Council, said consultations with rice millers and traders supported extending the import ban for at least two more months to give farmers stronger price support during the peak harvest.

For agribusiness stakeholders, the measures highlight a more assertive government role in managing domestic supply, stabilizing rural incomes, and sustaining local rice production. However, higher tariffs and extended import limits could weigh on consumer prices and food inflation, issues closely monitored by industry and financial markets.