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| A farmer from Cabanatuan City, PH said farmers like him would usually need to sell their harvest of palay (unhusked rice) for at least P17 a kilo to recover labor cost.(Photo by=Inquirer PH) |
[Asia News Communication = Reporter Reakkana] Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto on Monday called on the Department of Agriculture (DA) to investigate the alarming decrease in the buying price of locally grown rice, which has reportedly dropped to as low as P12 a kilo, making rice cheaper than a COVID-19 mask. A farmer named Donie Roberto said farmers like him would usually need to sell their harvest of palay (unhusked rice) for at least P17 a kilo to recover labor cost.
He said the department should check if the plunging farmgate price of palay was really an adverse effect of the rice tariffication law, which opened the country to imported rice from Vietnam and Thailand where rice production is usually cheaper due to government subsidies and mechanization.It should also consider postponing the implementation of rice tariffication if it was really causing the dip in the buying price of rice, he said.
The DA said it was open to investigating reports of low palay prices in the market. “We are ready to explain at the proper forum,” said its spokesperson, Noel Reyes. Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed the average farmgate price of palay continued its downtrend. During the first week of September, the price fell further to P17.64 a kilo from P18.04 the previous week.
