Nairobi: The government’s new floor price for palay (unhusked rice) will follow the National Food Authority’s (NFA) flexible Price Range Scheme (PRICERS) to protect Filipino farmers from unscrupulous traders, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said on Thursday. Under the PRICERS, the government’s buying price for fresh and wet palay is set between PHP17 and PHP23 per kilogram, while clean and dry palay will be bought at PHP23 to PHP30 per kilogram. ‘Executive Order (EO) 100 basically tells everyone that this should be the price we follow since this is what the government implements,’ DA Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said during a press briefing after meeting with the Department of Agrarian Reform, lawmakers, and local government units (LGUs). EO 100 sets a national floor price for palay, while EO 101 directs government entities to procure agricultural products directly from accredited local producers under the Sagip Saka Act. ‘As of the moment, we’ve seen that prices have started to increase. I think it’
s a combination of the EO 100 and the other interventions on the ground, with the PHP20 rice, procurement of LGUs, and import ban,’ Tiu Laurel said.
According to Philippines News Agency, the current government buying price stands at PHP17 per kg for wet palay and PHP23 per kg for clean and dry. Earlier, the DA reported that farm-gate prices had already risen to PHP14-16 per kg in some areas – a significant jump from the PHP8-10 per kg range during the peak of the wet season harvest.
Tiu Laurel expressed confidence that the palay floor price will help influence traders’ pricing, particularly for the upcoming dry season harvest in February. ‘Definitely, this will help. This also signals actions to all local government offices, LGUs, the national government to no longer buy imported rice,’ Tiu Laurel said. He noted that LGUs play a crucial role in both local palay procurement and storage capacity expansion. The national and local government procurement of rice may influence traders’ prices in each area and pro
tect Filipino rice producers from unreasonable buying amounts. The Department of the Interior and Local Government will also join the steering committee to ensure proper implementation nationwide.
