Manila offers P25K subsidy to community bakeries

Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso met with community bakers at Manila City Hall on Thursday morning, offering a P25,000 subsidy to local bakeries in exchange for a commitment to freeze the prices of basic breads for the next 30 days.

Under the agreement, participating bakeries will maintain current prices for staples such as pandesal, pandilimon, monay and Spanish bread.

Domagoso presented a detailed cost breakdown during the meeting, noting that production costs per sack of flour have reached approximately P2,165, with flour and yeast accounting for 69 percent of that total.

“Pandesal is the symbol of the Filipino family’s breakfast — it’s not just for the poor, but for the wealthy as well,” Domagoso said. He framed the subsidy as a government “cushion” to prevent families from feeling the full impact of rising inflation.

Chito Chavez, president of the Asosasyon ng Panaderong Pilipino, praised the initiative, noting that in his 30 years as a spokesperson for the industry, this is the first time a Manila mayor has created a direct mechanism to support community bakers.

In a separate update on the city’s crisis response, Domagoso announced that the “Libreng Sakay” program served 931,831 commuters over five days. The program, which ran 30 to 31 March and 6 to 8 April, utilized 1,049 participating jeepneys.

The mayor said the program is currently paused while the city assesses its effectiveness.

Domagoso also unveiled a new “Rice Blessings in Manila” program scheduled to begin 16 April. The initiative will provide 10 kilograms of rice to 80,000 families monthly for six months.

The program is funded through a P286 million allocation from the national government’s Local Government Support Fund.

He said that the initiative aims to provide relief to residents across various service sectors while simultaneously supporting local farmers.