ALTHOUGH thousands of metric tons of imported rice at lower tariffs have already arrived in the Philippines, consumers still don’t feel a “drop in market prices”.
Cristina Sanchez, owner of an eatery, still finds rice prices expensive. She buys imported well-milled rice at P57/kg and has raised the price of a cup of rice from P10 to P12 to cover costs.
“It’s still the same, [rice is] still expensive. I hope the rice prices go down. I just added P2 per cup, just to make a bit of profit,” according to Cristina Sanchez, Consumer.
However, according to the Department of Agriculture (DA), the price of imported rice is already decreasing following the arrival of imports under the reduced tariff of fifteen percent.
As of July 25, around 56,000 metric tons of rice have arrived in the country following the implementation of Executive Order 62.
The question remains: is the reported P6-P7 drop in rice prices being felt in the market.?
“I haven’t felt the drop-in prices. It’s more expensive. I don’t know what’s going on with our government. It’s still expensive at P52 per kilo,” Arlene Guillermo, a Consumer said.
For rice retailers at Muñoz market, it’s still difficult to obtain imported rice from traders, so their selling prices remain high.
“Currently, there’s no imported rice in Bulacan. It hasn’t arrived yet because it’s still on its way,” Simeona Ignacio, Rice retailer said.
“The prices we sell are still the same, and the prices we get are still the same. P55, P52, P57,” Reynante Santuele, Rice Retailer said.
In some markets, well-milled rice is priced between P50/kg and P57/kg.
The Department of Agriculture admits that only a small amount of imported rice has arrived due to various factors that importers are considering.
“It’s possible that they’re waiting for the pending Supreme Court decision, so our traders have a wait-and-see attitude.”
“We expect the distribution and volume of the rice that arrived will have a significant market impact by August, but not yet in large quantities,” stated Asec. Arnel de Mesa, Spokesperson, DA.
DA: p45/kg of well-milled rice available in Kadiwa sites starting August 1
The Department of Agriculture offers an alternative to buying affordable well-milled rice.
Starting Thursday, August 1, the agency will sell well-milled rice at P45/kg through the Rice For All program.
Consumers can purchase up to 25 kilos of rice at Kadiwa Stores in FTI, Caloocan, Potrero in Malabon, and the Bureau of Plant Industry in Manila.
Consumers can now be assured that the rice sold under this program is not old NFA stock.
The supply will come from partner stakeholders such as cooperatives and traders.
“The main objective of the Rice for All program is to make affordable rice available and is one of the government’s steps to mitigate the impact of food items on our inflation,” De Mesa added.
In addition to well-milled rice, premium rice priced at P52/kg will also be available exclusively at the FTI Kadiwa site.
Sales will be conducted every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.
Meanwhile, the P29 program is still available at 17 Kadiwa sites in Metro Manila, Bulacan, and CALABARZON.
Source: smninewschannel
