President backs food security emergency

PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Friday expressed support for the declaration of a food security emergency to bring down the prices of rice in the country. Speaking to reporters, the president said the recommendation to declare a food security emergency aims to address the soaring price of rice. "The reason that we are doing this is we have done everything to lower the price of rice, but the market is not being allowed to work properly," Marcos said. "The demand and supply curve is not followed because until now, even if you lower all inputs, prices remain high," he said. The president said the National Price Coordinating Council's (NPCC) recommendation would be transmitted to the Department of Agriculture (DA) by next week. "We have to force that price down and we have to make sure that the market works properly without friction cost because of a lot of things, some of which are illegal and are being investigated by Congress," Marcos said. The DA announced it would declare a food security emergency by the end of January after the retail price of rice continued to spiral despite declining global rice costs and tariff reductions. Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel said this week a food security emergency would enable the National Food Authority (NFA) to sell rice stocks to local government units (LGUs) and other government agencies at a lower price. It will also free up space in NFA warehouses and help local farmers through palay procurement for the coming harvest season. NFA rice may also be sold to the Philippine National Police (PNP), Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), and other government agencies. The NFA has nearly 300,000 metric tons of rice in stock, which can be sold to LGUs and other government agencies. The agency could then replace the disbursed stocks with locally produced rice. Under the Rice Tariffication Law, NFA's role has been limited to only procuring palay (unhusked rice) from local farmers and maintaining buffer stocks. The law removed the agency's authority to regulate rice trading and sell directly to the public. Declaring a food security emergency would temporarily expand its capabilities. Rice accounts for nearly 10 percent of a typical Filipino household's budget. For poorer families, it accounts for 20 percent. The declaration of a food security emergency could lead to rice price reductions of P3 to P5. The government is also exploring other avenues to address the issue, including expanding the capacity of NFA warehouses and implementing revised labeling requirements to ensure consumers are well-informed and protected from deceptive practices. It is also considering a hybrid approach to tariff rates, potentially increasing them for specific types of rice to further manage the situation. Metro Manila mayors have pledged support to the DA's initiatives to expand its rice distribution network and make affordable rice accessible to the public. The mayors made the pledge after Laurel's meeting with the Metro Manila Council headed by its President and San Juan Mayor Francis Zamora and Metropolitan Manila Development Authority Chairman Romando Artes. Zamora said the mayors' role "is to ensure affordable rice reaches communities quickly." Artes assured that the rice distribution program would not be politicized. "This is about serving the people, not politics," he said.