DA to establish Good Agricultural Practices code for rice

The Department of Agriculture plans to establish a Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) code for rice grown in the country to harmonize local safety and quality standards with international ones. “Safety and quality guidance for our rice producers and regulators is critical in strengthening our rice industry. A code of Good Agricultural Practices for rice can also be a strategy to ensure food safety and quality, facilitate better working conditions for farmers, and promote efficient and sustainable trade flows in the whole value chain,” said Agriculture Assistant Secretary and National Rice Program Coordinator Dante Delima. He also said that GAP certification can assist farmers in gaining market access and benefiting from price initiatives, and address problems such as low productivity and physical, biological, and chemical contamination. According to the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Good Agricultural Practices are "practices that address environmental, economic and social sustainability for on-farm processes, and result in safe and quality food and non-food agricultural products." The Philippines has been implementing GAP since 2005, using internationally harmonized guidelines for fruits and vegetables. The National Rice Program will finance the establishment of GAP standards for rice. It will be implemented starting this year by the Bureau of Agriculture and Fisheries Product Standards (BAFPS), with the National Food Authority (NFA), Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) as collaborating agencies. For the project, DA agencies will consolidate technical, scientific, and commercial information about the production, management, grading and classification of rice, as well as safety issues concerning the crop. — BM, GMA News