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THE government’s rice inventory can feed the nation for almost 11 days, according to the National Food Authority (NFA).

NFA Administrator Larry Lacson said the grains agency’s stockpile reached 8.19 million 50-kilo bags or 409,000 metric tons (MT) of rice equivalent.

“Our current buffer stock is good for 10.7 days,” Lacson told reporters in a news conference on Wednesday.

“Of this, 1.4 million bags have already been milled, while the rest are still in palay form and continuously being milled,” he added.

Procurement

THE grains agency said it procured 1.63 million 50-kilo bags or 81,271.3 metric tons (MT) of palay in March, a surge from the 42,743 bags or 2,137 MT it bought in the same month of the previous year.

With this, the NFA noted that it met its procurement target of 695,600 bags or 34,780 MT by more than threefold.

“Increase in procurement compared to last month is mainly due to favorable harvest this cropping season, and the continuous implementation of the Council-approved Price Range Scheme [Pricers] for palay procurement activity,” the NFA said in its latest accomplishment report.

Under its Pricers program, the grains agency buys clean and dry palay at P23 to P30 per kilo, while the price of fresh and wet palay ranges from P17 to P23 per kilo. This price scheme changes weekly per province.

The NFA said it had a total rice inventory of 6.86 million bags or 343,088 MT at the end of March.

“It should be noted that NFA’s inventory is 19 percent of the country’s national rice inventory.”

Low distribution

THE grains agency also noted that it only distributed 57,989 bags or 2,899.45 MT of milled rice in the reference month.

“[The NFA only achieved] 13.40 percent of the target of 432,740 bags or 21,637 MT, despite the declaration of food security emergency.”

It distributed 1,944 MT of rice to the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Office of Civil Defense (OCD), legislators, and local governments for relief operations and calamity response.

About 208 MT of rice were distributed to government agencies and local governments (LGUs) rice requirements under the Executive Order 51 program, while 356 MT was for the one-time rice allowance grant.

The NFA added that 390 MT have been distributed to LGUs under the food security emergency program, which was declared to fast-track the release of rice buffer stocks held by the NFA, thus allowing it to procure more palay from farmers amid the peak harvest.

The government recently launched the subsidized P20 per kilo rice program to free up space in NFA warehouses.

Source : businessmirror