The Department of Agriculture, through the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), said the municipality of San Mateo in Isabela has passed a landmark ordinance assuring the availability of safer and higher-quality rice options.
PhilRice said in a statement on Tuesday the ordinance, the first of its kind in the country, establishes a model for ensuring that locally produced rice meets stringent safety and quality standards.
The agency said Ordinance No. 2025-917 introduced through the Rice Business Innovations System (Rice-BIS) program of PhilRice promotes Philippine Good Agricultural Practices (PhilGAP)-certified rice, known as GAPproved rice.
Dr. Ofelia C. Malonzo, RiceBIS Isabela project lead, said GAPproved rice also adheres to best practices that reduce chemical use and uphold environmental standards.
The ordinance encourages government offices and local businesses to prioritize purchasing PhilGAP-certified products, while also promoting agro-entrepreneurship by supporting farmer cooperatives and asso-ciations engaged in PhilGAP-certified rice production.
The initiative is expected to help farmers secure better pricing and long-term contracts which, in turn, will increase their income, said PhilRice, but did not provide details on its targets following the passing of the landmark ordinance in Isabela.
Based on latest data from the Bureau of Plant Industry, 512 farms all over the country have been certi-fied through the RiceBIS program, with a target to continue providing for training of farmers and pro-motion of group certifications among cooperatives to expand production and meet the growing de-mand for healthier rice options.
Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority showed the country produced 19,087,135.43 metric tons (MT) of palay in 2024, of which 7.7 percent or 1,468,910 MT was from Isabela.
