DUMAGUETE CITY — The National Food Authority (NFA) in Negros Oriental has assured that there is no hoarding of commercial rice in the province amid the skyrocketing prices of basic commodities.
NFA provincial manager Hilaria Ganzon gave the assurance as the NFA here celebrates Grains Industry Week from September 20 to 26.
According to Ganzon, they are monitoring the prices of commercial rice in the market, as well as conducting inspections of warehouses.
“Sige mi ron ug inspeksyon ug mga warehouse ug ga monitor pod sa mga traders (we are continuously inspecting warehouses as well as monitoring traders), Ganzon said.
So far, the NFA here has not found any indication of hoarding and in fact, the traders here say that “menos gani ang supply sa source (the supply at source has dwindled),” she pointed out.
According to Ganzon, there is plenty of supply of corn grits in Negros Oriental, which is a lot cheaper than rice, and the supply from Mindanao is also stable.
“Naa ra kitay alternative sa atong bugas humay nga commercial kay tungod sa daghan man ang mukaon ug mais (we have an alternative to commercial rice because a lot of people eat corn grits),” she noted.
The NFA is selling government rice at PHP32 per kilo.
Ganzon said the price of NFA rice is stable compared to commercial rice, which has been “volatile” the past few months. (/PNA)
