Imports could only hurt palay farmers — Vergara

Nueva Ecija Rep. Ria Vergara, the chairperson of the House Committee on Social Services, said on Sunday that the rice shortage in the country is "artificial" and resembles the scarcity of onions in the last quarter of 2022.

"I think the increase in the price of rice is really artificial because last year, 2022, we ended the year with rice just going from P38 to P42," she said in an interview.

"We are now harvesting from September, October, and November, so the new stock is coming in. So the rice price should be lower. When we see this price drop because of the higher supply, the price cap will definitely be lifted," Vergara added.

Senator Imee Marcos, sister of the President, had expressed confidence that her brother would not allow rice importation into the country, which could harm rice farmers now that they are harvesting their produce.

Last year, the country experienced an agricultural shortage, primarily in onions, which saw prices soar to as high as P500 to P700 per kilo.

The government has implemented a price ceiling on rice to curb the soaring prices of the commodity in recent months.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. issued Executive Order 39, which set the price of regular rice to P41 and P45 for well-milled rice. Vergara said the compliance with the price cap is at nearly 90 percent.

Marcos previously said that the implementation of the price ceiling on rice is "going well as expected," notwithstanding calls from several groups, including the Federation of Philippine Industries, to limit the price cap to only two to three weeks due to the risk of bankrupting small retailers.

Vergara, meanwhile, anticipated that the country would exceed its palay production of 19.5 million metric tons in 2022, potentially reaching 20.5 million MT this year.

She also brushed off reports that the possible drop in the prices of the grain staple will be affected by the looming rice imports that will coincide with the harvest season.