Minimum wage earners in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) are now able to buy rice at P20 per kilo through the government’s Benteng Bigas Meron Na program, a joint initiative of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE-CAR) and the Department of Agriculture-CAR.
Under the program, each beneficiary may purchase up to 20 kilos of rice monthly for P400. The program was created to ease the burden of rising food costs on workers.
“Kailangan din po ayon sa formal sector, lalong-lalo na po sa ‘yung ating mga minimum wage earners ay makapag-participate pa rin po at saka magkaroon din po ng benepisyo sa programang ito,” DOLE-CAR Director Imelda Romanillos said.
As of October 2023, CAR has recorded 32,563 minimum wage earners. For its initial run in Baguio City and Benguet from June to December 2025, the program targets 3,209 beneficiaries.
By August, 1,431 workers from nine establishments in Baguio had already availed of the subsidized rice.
Officials plan to expand the program to the entire Cordillera region by January 2026.
“Lalong-lalo na sa ibang probinsya na if they are interested, pwede naman po kaming mag-orient sa inyo pong mga lugar, sa establishments mismo ‘yung interested po. At gusto nga po talaga naming marami po ang mag-benefit po dito sa Benteng Bigas Meron Na program ng DOLE,” Romanillos said.
The initiative is part of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s flagship program to make rice more affordable for Filipinos, particularly those struggling with daily expenses.
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