PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is studying a recommendation to extend a P50 per kilo maximum suggested retail price (MSRP) on imported rice as part of efforts to keep food prices stable amid global uncertainties, Malacañang said on Wednesday.
Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said the National Price Coordinating Council had recommended the extension of the price cap, which was initially imposed in May to temper rising rice prices and protect consumers.
“The president is still studying it for his approval because he is taking in consideration the imminent harvest season in September,” she said in the vernacular during a Palace briefing.
The Department of Agriculture (DA) has recommended a 60-day extension of the P50 per kilo MSRP for 5-percent broken imported rice beyond June 30 to sustain gains in curbing rice inflation.
Marcos ordered the implementation of the MSRP in May following a sharp increase in rice prices driven by supply concerns and global market disruptions linked to the war in the Middle East.
Castro said the administration was also pursuing additional interventions to stabilize food prices amid expectations of higher inflationary pressures in the second half of the year due to continuing geopolitical tensions and volatility in global commodity markets.
She said Marcos had directed the DA to ensure an adequate supply of fertilizer amid rising global demand partly caused by the ongoing crisis in the Middle East.
“At present, the government is providing fertilizers and soil inputs to our farmers because it is planting season, this is to lower production costs, which would mean lower palay (unmilled rice) costs during harvest season,” she added.
Castro also said the government was continuing to invest in postharvest facilities and cold storage infrastructure to reduce food losses and improve supply chain efficiency.
Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr., meanwhile, told reporters that the DA had recommended the extension as the country was currently in the lean months, which risks an increase in rice prices.
He said he was hopeful that rice prices would decline after fertilizer shipments arrive in August. This means fertilizer prices will drop to around P1,600 to P1,700 per bag of urea from as high as P2,900 per bag.
“So that’s very good news for our farmers, and it should lower the cost of our production and hopefully it will stabilize the price of rice this second half of the year,” Tiu Laurel said.
