The National Food Authority (NFA) has opened 18 warehouses across Central and Northern Luzon to sell affordable rice to farmers and farm workers under the P20 “Benteng Bigas, Meron Na!” project.
Eligible farmers cultivating two hectares or less, as well as registered farm workers under the Department of Agriculture’s (DA) Registry System for Basic Sectors in Agriculture (RSBSA), may now buy rice at P20 per kilogram for up to 10 kg. monthly or a full 50-kilogram sack to cover their allocation from August to December 2025.
“Based on RSBSA data, around five million rice farmers and workers will qualify once this program is fully rolled out,” said Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel Jr.
He said the initiative is one of the many steps being taken to ease the burden of those who feed the nation and help secure the country’s food supply.
To support the rollout, KADIWA ng Pangulo and Food Terminal Inc. outlets will be set up in NFA warehouses to sell the P20-per-kilogram rice purchased directly from local farmers.
Tiu Laurel said the initiative would soon expand to benefit 2.8 million RSBSA-registered fisherfolk, along with other regions nationwide.
The subsidized rice program, initially limited to senior citizens, solo parents, persons with disabilities, 4Ps beneficiaries and later minimum wage earners, is broadening its coverage to reach more sectors.
President Marcos directed the Agriculture Department to scale up the program to cover about 15 million households, or roughly 60 million Filipinos, by 2026, with plans to sustain it until the end of his term in June 2028.
The president approved a P18-billion budget for the 2026 expansion, on top of a proposed P9-billion NFA palay procurement budget for 2025.
