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PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. is keen on extending the two-month importation ban and raising tariffs on imported rice to keep prices stable during the peak of the harvest season, Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel Jr. said last Wednesday.

Laurel said Mr. Marcos has directed the Department of Agriculture (DA) to prepare the necessary orders to extend the import freeze.

“The duration of the import freeze and the possible increase in taxes on imported rice will be determined once we have more accurate data on supply and prices of palay at the farm gate,” he said after conferring with the chief executive.

The import suspension, which began on September 1 and is set to end on November 2, was initially imposed to help farmers recover from falling palay prices triggered by a surge in cheaper imported rice.

The DA noted that palay prices briefly rose from a low of P8 a kilo to around P14 per kilo before dropping again due to the onset of the main harvest and impact on palay quality of the heavy rains linked to La Niña.

Marcos issued Executive Order (EO) 93 which mandated the imposition of the ban on imported rice for 60 days. EO 93 also ordered the DA and the Department of Economy, Planning and Development to determine if there is a need to extend the import ban.

The agencies will convene every 30 days from the effectivity of the issuance “to evaluate the effects of the suspension of the importation on the supply and prices of rice in the country” to joint recommendation on the matter to his office.   

Data from the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI), an attached agency of the DA, indicated that rice arrivals reached 3.1 million metric tons as of September 11, four days after the Philippines officially closed its borders to vessels carrying imported grains.

Of this, BPI data showed that 2.47 MMT came from Vietnam, which maintains its spot as the country’s top supplier. Myanmar followed, accounting for 340,640.33 MT.

Agriculture Assistant Secretary Arnel V. de Mesa had said that only rice shipments that left their respective countries of origin by the end of August would be allowed entry into the Philippines, citing an order issued by the BPI.

The BPI has stopped issuing sanitary and phytosanitary import clearances (SPSICs) starting September 1.

Source : businessmirror