The Department of Agriculture (DA) yesterday said the sale of rice at P29 per kilo will continue as the government projects to produce more than 100 million kilos of rice by August this year through contract farming agreement with Farmers’ Cooperatives Associations.
The DA said in a statement yesterday KADIWA Centers have started selling the lower priced rice and other basic necessities and prime commodities such as fish, eggs, onions, garlic, fresh vegetables, and fruits in select areas in Metro Manila.
These centers are ADC Building of the DA Central Office in Quezon City; KADIWA Center inside the Bureau of Plant Industry in Malate, Manila; KADIWA Store – Llano Road in Barangay 167, Caloocan City; KADIWA Store, AMVA Housing, La Mesa Street in Barangay Ugong, Valenzuela City; and KADIWA Center, PhilFIDA Compound, Aria Street, Talon Dos, Las Piñas City.
The DA said each household may purchase a maximum of five kilos of rice from KADIWA Centers, subject to availability. The supply is influenced by various factors including transport, packaging and logistics, among others.
At P29, rice in KADIWA Centers is much lower than the prevailing price of regular milled and well-milled rice which as of Friday were being sold at P48-P51 and P51-P54, respectively, for imported varieties.
For local, regular milled is at P46 to P52 while well-milled is at P48 to P55.
To date, there are a total of 265 regular KADIWA stores nationwide and 119 KADIWA pop-up stores that operate on a scheduled basis to respond to consumer demand.
The DA said KADIWA Centers are able to sell commodities at much lower prices by removing unnecessary layers in the trading cycle.
The buying price for the rice was not immediately known.
This flagship program of the Marcos administration not only addresses rising food prices but also provides farmers, fisherfolk, and micro, small and medium enterprises with venues to sell their produce and facilitate market linkages.
Earlier, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. announced he would certify as urgent the proposed amendments to Republic Act 11203, also known as the rice tariffication law (RTL), to lower rice prices in the country.
Marcos said the House of Representatives and the Senate have found a solution that would allow the government to import rice, eventually reducing rice prices.
