Yap issued the directive as he acted on the reported existence of some 45,000 bags of rice and palay husks remained kept in a warehouse in the NFA’s office in Tuguegarao, Cagayan since the year 2000.
Yap immediately ordered an investigation of the matter and appointed NFA’s Senior Deputy Administrator Jaime Asuncion as head of the investigating team. Asuncion has also been instructed to conduct an inspection of all NFA warehouses across the country to ascertain the quality of the agency’s stored stocks.
"Every grain of the rice that comes out of our warehouses should be of good quality. As guardian of the nation’s food security, we should never sacrifice the welfare of our consumers. We should provide them only safe and healthy foods," Yap said.
While rice can be kept fit for consumption for a longer period via technical intervention such as reconditioning, it will definitely deteriorate over more than two years in storage, Yap explained.
In an effort to totally erase any bad impressions about government rice, Yap has ordered the implementation of the Total Quality Rice Program starting this year. Under the program, all NFA stocks coming out of its warehouses shall carry a Quality Seal which certifies to the quality and fitness of the commodity prior to distribution to end-consumers.
Also part of the quality rice program is the implementation of the "No Sweepings" policy as well as the maintenance of a clean and healthy environment in all NFA warehouses. Sweepings result from spillages which were collected and containing foreign matter in different amounts and are strictly being monitored in all NFA warehouses.
Since 1997, the NFA has also been a lead implementing agency of the Philippine Grains Standardization Law which calls for the proper labeling and color coding of rice according to its various classifications such as regular and well-milled (white sack), premium (blue), and special rice (yellow).
The NFA’s quality rice program comes way before the off-harvest months of July to September when the agency’s rice distribution peaks. Traditionally called the lean months, this period is also the time when typhoons and other calamities usually hit the country.
"By ensuring the quality of our stocks, we want to assure our people that even during calamities, NFA rice shall be at their best condition when released for sale in our market outlets or for relief purposes," Yap said.
Meanwhile, Yap assures the public that the NFA has more than enough rice stocks for the coming lean months and that rice imports to fill the local supply gap are coming on time. As of the third week of May, the NFA has total food security stocks of 686,400 metric tons, good to last for 26 days based on the current daily national requirement of 26,400 MT. This level is 11 days more than the mandatory security stock level of 15 days’ supply at any given time.