Marcos signs 2 pro-farmer measures

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signed two executive orders aimed at protecting farmers from low market prices and improving their productivity and income.

Under Executive Order 100, a floor price will be set for palay (unmilled rice) to shield farmers from unfairly low farmgate prices and ensure fair returns on production costs.

Marcos said the measure would stabilize prices and protect farmers from market volatility, especially during harvest seasons when prices fall due to oversupply or unfair trading practices.

The Department of Agriculture will determine and regularly adjust the floor price, while a steering committee composed of the Department of the Interior and Local Government, Department of Trade and Industry, Department of Agrarian Reform, Department of Social Welfare and Development, and the National Food Authority will oversee its implementation.

Administrative sanctions will be imposed if palay is bought below the set floor price. Government facilities may also be used as temporary grain storage when warehouses are unavailable.

Meanwhile, Executive Order 101 directs all government agencies and local governments to fully implement the Sagip Saka Act to boost food security, increase farm productivity, and improve the lives of farmers and fisherfolk.

The order requires direct government procurement of agricultural and fishery products from accredited cooperatives and enterprises to ensure fair market access and reduce bureaucratic barriers.