PH declares food security emergency on rice

Metro Manila, Philippines - The government has declared a food security emergency on rice to address what it called an “extraordinary increase” in prices.

The declaration would allow the release of National Food Authority (NFA) buffer stocks in markets, and clear storage areas for the approaching harvest season.

It also followed the seeming failure of the tariff cut on rice imports from 35% to 15% in July last year to significantly bring down prices.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said in a statement on Monday, Feb. 3, that the rollout of NFA stocks will “stabilize prices and ensure that rice, a staple food for millions of Filipinos, remains accessible to consumers.”

The declaration was anchored on a resolution from the National Price Coordinating Council (NPCC) chaired by the Trade Department with eight more Cabinet officials as members.

Extraordinary increase

This would be the first time the country would be under a food security emergency in line with the rice tariffication law.

The NPCC recommended the declaration as the Philippine Statistics Authority reported that rice inflation in July 2023 reached 4.2 percent, which “[exceeded] the upper limit of the 4 percent food inflation target of the Philippines Development Plan 2024-2028.”

The NPCC also mentioned that the increase in rice prices surged to 17.9 percent in September 2023.

According to PSA data, rice inflation went down to 13.2 percent in October 2023, before continuously picking up to 24.4 percent in March 2024. In December, the print was 0.8 percent.

In its circular, the DA said that the price body’s resolution “determined that rice prices remain elevated emphasizing that [in] December 2024, the price levels of regular milled rice and well milled rice were respectively 19 percent and 20 percent higher compared to the period before the price spikes in July 2023.”

“Despite efforts to liberalize rice imports and reduce tariffs, the domestic market has been slow to respond, with retail prices surpassing expectations,” the agency also said.

The DA said the formula in determining an extraordinary increase in rice prices will be reviewed every four months.

It said the emergency “shall remain in force and effect until lifted or withdrawn by the secretary.”