By Dean Aubrey Caratiquet
Ahead of an upcoming cycle for rice, the country’s staple grain, the Department of Agriculture (DA) is looking to expedite the process of finalizing import policies to ensure sufficient supply across the archipelago throughout the year.
In a media release, Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. ordered the creation of a technical working group (TWG) to provide regulatory oversight on rice importation that would balance supply, prices, market demand, and farmer protection.
Secretary Tiu-Laurel underscored in the meeting with industry players and DA officials, “We have to work fast. It’s already February.”
The TWG will be composed of, among others, representatives from the DA-Office of Undersecretary for Rice Industry Development and Food Terminal Inc. (FTI), Philippine Rice Industry Stakeholders Movement (PRISM), and Philippine Rice Importers Association (PRIA).
Instead of ad hoc approvals, the group will focus on license-based access verified by performance, guided by data on regional deficits, buffers, and real-time stock levels.
This data will be processed using an analytical approach, making use of a calibrated system for Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao that will determine the quantity and price of imported rice, as well as in places where it will be sold for distribution.
The DA also plans to double down on transparency by tightening reporting requirements on rice stocks, warning that traders and warehouses that fail to submit data risk losing import eligibility to import registration.
For farmers, the promise is protection through structure. By aligning import timing with verified market needs and enforcing compliance across traders and millers, the DA aims to curb speculative behavior that distorts prices at the farm gate. For consumers, the payoff is steadier supply and fewer price spikes driven by uncertainty.
jpv
