NFA seeks rice offers from Vietnam, Thailand

MANILA, Philippines - The National Food Authority (NFA) is set to send letters to Vietnam and Thailand next week to seek offers for the country’s plan to import 120,000 metric tons (MT) of rice under a government-to-government deal, an official said.

“After Holy Week, we will send letters to qualified countries informing them that we intend to purchase 120,000 MT of rice under a government-to-government arrangement,” NFA administrator Angelito Banayo said in a telephone interview earlier this week.

He said the qualified countries are those which have existing rice purchase agreements with the Philippines such as Thailand and Vietnam.

“We will be looking at their offers. We will look at the price and terms and decide based on that,” he said.

The Agriculture department, he said, has decided to pursue buying under a government-to-government deal the remaining 120,000 MT of the 500,000 MT volume of rice imports set for this year as there is not much time left to conduct another tender for import rights.

He said all rice shipments would have to be in the country by June 30 or before the lean months.

Last month, the NFA held two auctions for the import rights of 380,000 MT of rice for traders and farmers’ groups.

At the first auction held on March 19, the NFA prequalified 102 rice traders out of 107 participants to bring in 190,000 MT of rice to the country.

The NFA, meanwhile prequalified 262 farmers’ groups out of 272 groups which submitted bids for the import of another 190,000 MT of rice during the March 26 auction.

Banayo was reported to have said earlier that at least 114 trader and farmer groups would be given rights to import 380,000 MT of rice.

The import rights would allow traders or farmers’ groups to bring in the rice to the country at zero tariff in exchange for service fees. Those with the highest offer for service fees would be given the import rights.

Banayo said the government would start awarding the import rights next week.

“All should be completed by end-April,” he said.

The country has been reducing its rice imports each year as it seeks to be self-sufficient in the staple by the end of 2013.

Last year, the country cut its rice imports to 860,000 MT from 2010’s 2.45 million MT.

Rice imports next year, Agriculture assistant secretary Dante Delima said earlier, could even be slashed further to 100,000 MT if rice output hits the 18.46 million MT target.