Marcos on food emergency: We have to force price down

The proposed declaration of a food security emergency next week amid the high cost of rice in the market is meant "to force the price down" after the government has done everything to do so, President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr said on Friday.

Marcos said the prices of rice in the market remained high even after the decrease in the cost of production.

"Hindi nasusundan and supply and demand curve. Dahil hanggang ngayon kahit ibaba mo lahat ng inputs, ang pagbenta pa rin mataas pa rin,” Marcos said in Bernadette Reyes’ report in 24 Oras.

(The supply and demand curve is not being followed. Even if you lower the cost of inputs, the selling prices remain high.)

“And so we have to force that price down and we have to make sure that the market works properly,” he added.

The National Price Coordinating Council has approved a resolution urging the Department of Agriculture (DA) to declare a "food security emergency for rice" as the prices of the commodity remained high.

Trade Secretary Ma. Cristina Roque, the chairperson of the NPCC, said the food emergency declaration would allow the National Food Authority (NFA) to release the buffer stock of rice to stabilize prices.

The stocks that will be released will then be replaced with locally produced rice to support Filipino farmers.

Marcos said the declaration of a food security emergency might happen next week when the DA receives the recommendation of the price council.

The National Food Authority said that there are about 700,000 bags of rice currently stocked in their warehouse. This is apart from their stock of unmilled rice, it added.

“Kung sakali man pong matodo na natin, full blast, magiling na po natin lahat ‘yan ay kabuuan po niyan ng buong bansa ay meron pong mga 5.7 million bags,” said NFA administrator Larry Lacson.

(If ever we can mill everything, we will have a total of 5.7 million bags.)

“Ngayon po, doon sa per calamity na alam natin dapat hindi po tayo mawawalan niyan, ay kalkulado naman po kung ano ilalabas natin diyan. Hindi po natin ilalabas ‘yan nang lahatan,” he added.

(When it comes to our supply per calamity, we already calculated how many stocks we can release. So we will not release everything at once.)

The DA, on the other hand, will continue its programs offering affordable rice such as the “Rice for All” that sells P38 per kilo of rice, which is mixed with broken rice grains. —Vince Angelo Ferreras/NB, GMA Integrated News