Despite price spike, DA won’t impose rice SRP

MANILA, Philippines — Imposing a suggested retail price (SRP) or price ceiling for rice is not an option for the Department of Agriculture (DA) amid reports that the retail cost of the staple has reached as high as P75 per kilo in the Bicol region.

The priority of the DA is rice supply, Agriculture Assistant Secretary and spokesperson Arnel de Mesa said in a radio interview yesterday.

“At present, we are not talking about that (SRP). Secretary (Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr.) already announced that. We are focusing right now on our supply,” De Mesa said.

Increase in rice prices continues despite a report by the Philippine Statistics Authority that palay production in 2023 increased to 20.05 million metric tons compared to 19.75 million MT in 2022, according to Bantay Bigas spokesperson Cathy Estavillo on Wednesday.

She said consumers do not feel the increase in palay production, noting that retail prices of rice in 2023 were the highest in 14 years.

De Mesa gave assurance that the high retail prices of rice will be tackled during the meeting of the Cabinet to involve other agencies of the government.

“We have the challenge of the El Niño and we want to ensure that we will be able to sustain it or at least minimize the impact of the El Niño by providing support to the farmers like seedlings, fertilizer and irrigation, especially small scale irrigation projects,” De Mesa noted.

Based on monitoring of the DA, the retail price of local regular milled rice reached as high as P53 per kilo; local well-milled rice, P59 per kilo; local premium rice, P63 per kilo; local special rice, P68 per kilo; imported well-milled rice, P56 per kilo; imported premium rice, P62 per kilo and imported rice, P65 per kilo.

Bantay Bigas had earlier issued a warning on the increase in hunger incidence amid the continued spike in retail prices of rice and that retailers have noted a drop in the volume of rice that consumers buy in the market.