Former Agriculture Secretary Leonardo Montemayor on Monday forecast an increase in rice prices in the next few weeks to as high as P60 per kilo for regular milled rice.
Rice prices have been going up in the past few weeks in the wake of floods brought by typhoons and the southwest monsoon.
Government estimates, however, see a decline in rice prices as harvest has started and will peak in October (see related story on A4 — editors).
“I would not be surprised if the retail price of rice reaches more than P60. Every week we have seen the price rise by up to P5 over the price of the previous week,” Montemayor, who served in the Duterte administration, told a television interview.
But a group of rice millers in Nueva Ecija believed otherwise.
Elizabeth Vana, president of the Nueva Ecija Rice Millers Association, said the price of rice will start going down as harvest in Nueva Vizcaya already started.
“Actually, they are now harvesting in Vizcaya, there are some who have yet to do so. But for us in Nueva Ecija, we will start harvesting around the second week to third week of September,” Vana said.
On Sunday, the farmers’ group Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura (SINAG) asked for the abolition of the National Food Authority over its alleged preference to import rice rather than buy from Filipino farmers.
SINAG chairman Rosendo So said NFA is currently negotiating with India for rice procurement.
“They’re not buying from our farmers anymore. They’re buying from Vietnam, India… The NFA mandate is to buy palay isn’t it? What are they doing negotiating with India to buy rice?” So said.