(MANILA BULLETIN FILE PHOTO)
In year number two of Republic Act (RA) 11203 or the RTL, the DA said that the country’s rice sector is “gradually realizing its potentials”, as it noted that palay (unhusked rice) production and farmgate prices have increased this dry season.
This has resulted in more affordable rice for consumers amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, the agency said.
“To top it all, with sustained initiatives and strong cooperation of various rice industry stakeholders, we look forward to achieving an all-time record of at least 20.4 million MT (metric tons) of palay this year,” DA Sec. William Dar said in a statement.
Palay output seen to reach 20 million MT in 2021 By JON VIKTOR D. CABUENAS, GMA News
Published April 18, 2021 4:52pm The Philippines palay (unmilled rice) production is expected to reach 20 million metric tons this year to mark another all-time high, according to the Department of Agriculture (DA). Agriculture Secretary William Dar said the country is likely to achieve a record-high production of 20.4 million metric tons of palay this year, up from the 19.3 million recorded in 2019. Despite the pandemic, we are slowly but surely hurdling the challenges in the implementation of [the Rice Tariffication Law] with tangible results in terms of palay productivity, farmgate price, and retail prices of rice, said Dar.
Rice inventory down in Philippines PSA
Published February 18, 2021 11:53pm Amid the low pork supply, the Philippine Statistics Authority said rice supply in the country also went down by 12.8 percent. According to Mariz Umali’s report on “24 Oras” on Thursday, as of January 1, 2021, the rice supply in the country is only at 2.33 million metric tons. The rice supply in the commercial warehouse also decreased by 27.5 percent or over 689,000 metric tons. Meanwhile, the rice stock of the National Food Authority went down by 32.8 percent or more than 352,000 metric tons. Moreover, Philippine Integrated Rice Program of the Department of Agriculture said the low rice supply is due to the series of typhoons during the last quarter of 2020.