Rice imports already surpass full 2025 level

As of early August

MANILA, Philippines — The country’s rice imports have already surpassed the 3.39 million metric tons (MT) logged last year, as the government moves to boost its buffer stocks ahead of the incoming El Niño weather disturbance.

Data from the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) showed rice imports amounted to 3.46 million MT as of Aug. 13, higher than the 3.39 million MT imported in full-year 2025.

Most of the imports during the period came from Vietnam, which remained the country’s top rice supplier, with 2.59 million MT. This was followed by Thailand with 378,404 MT and Myanmar with 286,052 MT.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. has maintained that the government would not impose a ban on rice imports to build up local stocks and ensure an adequate supply of rice as dry conditions are expected to persist until early 2027.

“There will be no import ban because there is a big El Niño coming and we have to have buffer stocks in preparation for December to April next year,” he said earlier.

The Department of Agriculture’s mandate comes despite farmer groups calling to impose a 30-percent safeguard duty on imported rice, which they said has negatively affected the domestic rice industry.

As of Aug. 12, the BPI has issued 5,643 sanitary and phytosanitary import clearances (SPSICs) for the importation of 5.35 million MT of rice.

SPSICs are government-issued documents that allow imported commodities to enter the country.

The Philippines is expected to reach record-high import levels this year, amid production constraints due to the incoming drought brought by El Niño coupled with the effects of higher fuel and fertilizer prices, the US Department of Agriculture said.

Tiu Laurel said the DA would impose strategies like shifting production to less affected regions, expanding cloud seeding and solar-powered irrigation and maximizing water efficiency to reduce the impact of droughts to the food supply.

The agency will also distribute drought-tolerant seed varieties, provide crop insurance indemnification and extend emergency financial support to vulnerable farmers.

“We have to produce more where the impact of El Niño will be less severe, increase the water available to farmers and use every drop wisely through practices such as alternate wetting and drying and planting crops that require less water,” he said.

El Niño is expected to cut local palay, or unmilled rice, production by about 700,000 MT this year, while higher input costs may also place rice harvest between 18.6 million MT and 18.8 million MT.