Government sets NFA as temporary palay price benchmark

The government will use the National Food Authority (NFA) as a temporary benchmark for rice purchases by state agencies, a move expected to raise farmers’ incomes and strengthen the agency’s role in ensuring fair grain prices, Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel Jr. said on Saturday, 8 November 2025.

“The floor price is an integral part of the solutions we need to help improve our rice farmers’ income,” Tiu Laurel said in a joint press briefing. “We will always act in the best interest of both farmers and consumers.”

The NFA Council has authorized palay buying price ranges from P17 to P30 per kilo, depending on moisture content and market conditions, with dry palay currently bought at P20 to P23 per kilo. The floor price, together with the Sagip Saka Act—which allows government agencies to directly purchase palay and other agricultural commodities from farmers—is expected to widen market access and stabilize farm-gate prices.

“The NFA pricing will be the benchmark for government purchases until the Steering Committee sets the regional floor prices,” Tiu Laurel added. He assured the public that mechanisms are in place to keep milled rice affordable despite higher procurement costs.

Agrarian Reform Secretary Conrado Estrella III said the new pricing directive under Executive Order (EO) 100 and the full implementation of the Sagip Saka Act under EO 101 would “significantly benefit farmers” as government agencies step up local rice procurement.

The measures align with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s temporary rice import ban, aimed at lifting palay prices. Estrella added that once imports resume, tariffs will be raised—but “calibrated to balance the interests of farmers and consumers.”