Rice prices remain stable, says DA

The prices of rice will remain relatively stable at P48 per kilo for well-milled and P41 to P43 for regular milled in the upcoming Christmas rush, the Department of Agriculture said Monday.

DA Assistant Secretary Arnel de Mesa told lawmakers during a briefing on the status of the country's sufficiency in rice and other key commodities before the House Committee on Agriculture and Food briefing that the cost of well-milled and regularly milled is seen to be pegged at P48 and P41 to P43 per kilo respectively next month.

De Mesa's manifestation contradicts the forecast of a farmers' group, RiceUp Farmers Inc., in early November that the cost of rice will go down in December due to the ongoing harvest that boosts local supply.

The retail price for regular milled and well-milled rice is P39.43 and P43.77, respectively, per kilo.

The DA's latest pricing monitoring report, however, showed that local commercial rice in selected markets in Metro Manila costs P47.65 for well-milled and P43.70 for regularly milled, respectively.

The prices are still significantly distant from President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s target of P20 per kilo of rice.

Albay Rep. Joey Salceda, during the deliberation, asserted that lowering the cost of rice would not be "impossible" if the Marcos administration is indeed serious about doing so and that the DA should intervene and adopt necessary measures.

"During GMA's time, it was very easy to lower the rice. NFA subsidized it. They bought it expensive and sold it cheap. So, if Bongbong really wants P20, that's easy," the economist-lawmaker stressed.

Deputy Speaker Antonio Alabano butt in that the NFA, which is mandated to ensure national food security and stabilize the supply prices of rice, no longer has the power to do such, and a proposed law that may potentially address the issue is still pending in the House.

"That's my point. Then, we can set up a subsidy fund for it. If there's no NFA, then somebody can do it if you want P20 (per kilo rice). It's not impossible," Salceda said.

Last week, the DA assured that there would be enough affordable rice supply in the market.

De Mesa assured lawmakers that there will be an "ample" supply of the staple grain for the lean months, which run from mid-January to mid-February.

Currently, the supply of rice is larger than demand, according to De Mesa.

Meanwhile, DA chief Franciso Laurel informed the panel that the prices of onions in the market, which once skyrocketed to P500 to P700 per kilo during the last quarter of 2022, are now down to P140 to P150 for red and white onions, respectively.

Laurel likewise assured lawmakers that the DA would keep an eye on the supply of onion and that they would also implement measures to stave off another recurrence of the spike in commodity this year.