Malacañang has expressed support for the restoration of the National Food Authority’s (NFA) function to import rice, which, it said, should enable it to better respond to the needs of the market and farmers.
The move stemmed from a previous proposal by Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel to restore the importation powers of NFA and to review the Rice Tariffication Act during a congressional hearing on the high prices of rice.
The NFA lost its authority to import rice and sell it directly to the public when the Rice tariffication Act was passed in 2019. It currently has to go through local government units (LGUs) to act on rice importation needs, to buy palay from the farmers and sell the grains to the public.
“Maganda sana po kung mabigyan muli ng authority ang NFA kasi nawalan po talaga sila ng power para po umangkat ng bigas. Sa ngayon po, lahat ng gagawin ng NFA dapat munang dumaan sa LGU (It would be better if the NFA could be authorized again to directly import rice. At present, everything they do must go through the LGUs),” Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro said in a press briefing at Malacañang on Wednesday.
Castro said she hopes Congress would act on the appeal to empower the NFA.
