As farmgate prices of palay drop to as low as P8 per kilo in Northern Luzon, farmers face mounting losses, and some may be forced to stop planting altogether, according to the Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura (SINAG).

In Barangay Bantayan, Mangaldan, Pangasinan, farmers said they are already losing up to P10,000 per hectare this third cropping season because of the sharp drop in palay’s farmgate price.

“‘Yun ang problema namin na magsasaka. Wala naman kaming magawa. Siyempre ibenta pa rin namin itong mga palay,” Jun Pinla, a farmer, said.

SINAG said the farmgate price of palay in Regions 1, 2, and 3 has fallen to just P8 to P10 per kilo, nearly half of last season’s P15 to P17.

“‘Yung mga traders and millers, naka-depende sa international price. Dahil mababa ang Vietnam price, kaya this is one reason na hindi bibili ang mga trader and miller ng mataas na presyo ng palay,” SINAG Chairman Engr. Rosendo So said.

One major reason behind the price crash is the low tariff on imported rice. Currently, imported rice is taxed only 15 percent.

“Sinabi na natin sa NEDA ‘yan and with DA na dapat ibalik na ang taripa sa 35% para hindi bumagsak nang ganun ang buying price ng palay,” So added.

SINAG warns that if the low prices continue, more farmers may stop planting palay, leading to lower rice production by the last quarter of the year.