NEDA move to lead to higher rice prices, group warns
Farmers are up in arms over the government’s decision to extend lower tariffs on rice and other imported commodities until the end of 2024, saying this will only lead to higher prices of the staple grain next year.
The National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) announced the extension of lower tariffs even as the Department of Agriculture assured a stable supply of rice until April 2024.
The NEDA board, chaired by President Marcos, on Friday approved the proposed temporary extension of reduced Most Favored Nation (MFN) tariff rates on certain commodities under Executive Order No. 10 until end of 2024.
The tariff rates for rice will stay at 35 percent both in-quota and out-quota for the extended period, while pork will remain at 15 percent in-quota and 25 percent out- quota, and corn at 5 percent in-quota and 15 percent out-quota, NEDA Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said.
But the group Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura or SINAG said it was “very unfortunate” that the Marcos economic team “once again dangled the ‘rising food prices’ to penalize local producers and promote the interests of a few privileged importers and favored traders.”
Local producers had nothing to do with the spiraling cost of staples, especially rice, said Jayson Cainglet, Executive Director of SINAG.
“All countries are affected by El Nino, by the war in Ukraine. But we are impacted more since we have relied on imports for the longest time,” he said.
Average inflation in 2023 will hit 6.4 percent according to NEDA, higher than the government target of 2 to 4 percent. This developed as Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr., who took over the reins of the department from President Marcos, is preparing a comprehensive plan to steer the country’s crop sector.
DA Assistant Secretary Arnel De Mesa also said the country’s rice production was stable and is expected to hit a total 20 million metric tons (MT) before the year ends.
The Philippines earlier imported 295,000 MT of non-basmati white rice from India. An initial 95,000 MT is set to arrive within December, while the remaining import is expected to be delivered by January, De Mesa said.
Apart the from that, the country has 3.03 million MT of imported rice, as of the end of November, he added at the Saturday News Forum in Quezon City.
According to DA’s latest monitoring, the prevailing retail price of well-milled rice is at P51 to P52 per kilogram.
A late November survey showed nearly 6 out of 10 Filipinos consider themselves food secure at least for the next six months.
The Nov. 22 to 29 survey of local research and analytics company Capstone-Intel Corp. released Friday indicated that majority of the respondents or 59 percent described themselves as “very secured” or “secured” in terms of food security for the next six months.