The National Food Authority (NFA) plans to forge an agreement with the Food Terminal Inc. (FTI) as “a last resort” if the upcoming auction of aging rice stocks this month fails to attract sufficient bidders.
NFA Administrator Larry Lacson said he would seek approval from the NFA Council to enter into a negotiated contract with a government-owned or -controlled corporation (GOCC) like the FTI, should the second round of auction on December 5 fail to attract bidders again.
“We have an option in our rules that if this still fails, we can enter into a negotiated arrangement or transaction with GOCCs like FTI and give them the aging rice stocks,” Lacson told reporters on the sidelines of the recent Kadiwa ng Pangulo Expo 2025.
“But I will ask the NFA Council for approval, so that there won’t be problems and no one will think that something’s wrong. Then the FTI would manage the aging rice…the point is we should release the aging rice stocks.”
Lacson said the NFA Council has the discretion to revise the rules if there are no takers for the aging rice stocks.
However, the NFA chief said this is a measure of last resort and that he is optimistic that the agency will be able to sell the rice stocks during the auction.
“This is just a worst-case scenario, since I think many would participate in the auction because there’s an import ban and we don’t have enough imported rice,” Lacson said, adding that the farm gate price of palay has gone up to P18 per kilo.
“Our purpose is twofold: to have corporate receipts and also to prepare for the upcoming harvest to ease the space in our warehouses.”
The NFA conducted the first auction of aging rice stocks in October, but Lacson said it failed as only a few participants joined the bidding.
He said the grains agency lowered the floor price by at least P2 per kilo in its bid to attract more bidders in its December auction
Under the revised scheme, the NFA will sell 1.16 million 50-kilo bags or 57,920 metric tons (MT) of aging rice with a total transaction value (TTV) of P1.44 billion.
The minimum acceptable price (MAP) for rice stocks stored in warehouses for more than three months to six months is P25.16 per kilo; for more than six months to nine months, P24.63 per kilo; over nine months to 12 months, P23.84 per kilo.
For rice stocks aged over 12 months to 15 months, the MAP stands at P23.31 per kilo, while for those aged more than 15 months to 18 months, and over 18 months, the floor price is P22.52 per kilo.
For the initial auction, the NFA introduced a graduated pricing scheme, with floor prices ranging from P27.96 to P25.01 per kilo depending on how long the rice has been stored.
Under current rules, the grains agency’s rice stocks are considered “aging” starting from the third month after milling.
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