(PNA)
DUMAGUETE CITY – In an apparent bid to curtail possible exploitation of the prices of commercial rice in the market, the National Food Authority (NFA) in Negros Oriental launched Monday its implementation of the Suggested Retail Price (SRP) for the staple.
The launching was done simultaneously in the other provinces in Region 7.
Commercial grains retailers and officials of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Department of Agriculture-Provincial Agriculture Technology Coordinating Office (DA-PATCO) and the NFA here were present to brief the rice retailers on the new policy as well as to attend to their concerns.
NFA-Negros Oriental provincial manager Hilaria Ganzon said the implementation of SRP for commercial rice was ordered by Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol.
“Kaning SRP na-conceptualize ni siya tungod atong sa crisis sa bugas nga nitaas ug maayo ang presyo sa bugas (the SRP was conceptualized due to the previous crisis on rice with skyrocketing prices,” she explained.
What happened was that local suppliers here had purchased commercial rice from Manila-based suppliers at an already higher price, especially during the months of July, August, and September, thus a chain reaction took place at the local level, she disclosed.
The prices of commercial rice during these months just kept rising, Ganzon noted.
She said that although there is ample supply of rice and there is no shortage at all, the prices of commercial rice kept going up because of the adjustments made by the suppliers, “ilabi na kadtong ang source gyud mismo (especially coming from the source)”.
According to Ganzon, the pricing decision is based on their list of the supplier’s operating costs, margin requirements and profit parameters, among others.
The NFA manager warned that there are sanctions for grains retailers who will not heed the SRP, such as fines and penalties, and even imprisonment.
Meanwhile, there is no hoarding of commercial rice in the local market even as the NFA and the DTI have assured that they are continuously monitoring its prices in the province, especially now with the implementation of the SRP.
