Maximum suggested retail price for imported rice still at P43 per kilo —DA

The Department of Agriculture (DA) on Sunday said the maximum suggested retail price (MSRP) for 5 percent broken imported rice will still be at P43 per kilo for now.

The price was maintained while the government completes procedures for a higher import tariff, the DA said in a press release.

“The January MSRP will stay at P43 because the duty is still 15 percent,” DA Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said.

Tiu Laurel Jr. said any adjustment to the MSRP will be considered after the implementation of higher tariff on imported rice.

Rice import duties will be raised to 20% from the current 15% on January 16, 2025 to comply with regulatory and procedural requirements, he said.

“We have to complete the process before raising the tariff,” the DA chief said.

President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. earlier ordered a four-month moratorium on rice importation starting September 2025 to support farmgate prices during the wet-season harvest beginning October.

In 2024, rice imports reached about 4.8 million metric tons, the DA said. This volume "dragged palay prices down to as low as P8 per kilo in some areas before the ban," it added.

"Since the import freeze took effect, palay prices have recovered, rising to around P17 per kilo for wet palay and about P23 per kilo for dry palay in several producing regions," the DA said.

The DA and rice industry stakeholders have thus agreed to a tighter import management especially during rice harvest season when domestic production peaks and millers are expected to help support farmgate prices.

After the rice importation ban ends on December 31 this year, the government will allow the importation of an initial 500,000 metric tons of rice, the  DA said. 

"Of this, about 50,000 metric tons will be allocated to Food Terminals Inc.," it added.

During next year's harvest season starting around March, the National Food Authority plans to buy wet palay at P17 per kilo and dry palay at P21 per kilo, said Tiu Laurel, who is also chairman of the NFA Council.

"He expects private traders to offer higher prices, supported by the higher tariff and more controlled import volumes," the DA said. —KG, GMA Integrated News