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RICE arrivals breached 3 million metric tons (MMT) four days before the Philippines officially closed its borders to regular and well-milled imports of the staple grain.

Data from the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) showed that 3.1 MMT of rice shipments have entered the country as of September 11, a few days before the cutoff on September 15.

Of this, BPI data indicated 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.

The Philippines also purchased rice stocks from other countries such as Thailand (164,010.26 MT), Pakistan (76,344.02 MT), and India (19,931.45 MT).

Agriculture Assistant Secretary Arnel 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.

He noted that the BPI would no longer issue sanitary and phytosanitary import clearances (SPSICs) starting September 1.

This, following an Executive Order (EO) issued by President Marcos, which suspended the imports of regular and well-milled rice until October 30, 2025.

However, de Mesa said that rice shipments that left the country of origin before the ban started can still enter the Philippines until September 15. Specialty rice varieties, such as Japonica, glutinous, and basmati rice, will be exempt from the ban.

The DA official added that only four ports would cater to rice imports arriving before the cutoff. These are the Ports of Manila, Davao, Cagayan de Oro, and Cebu.

“So, if shipments left the country beyond August 31, they won’t be allowed to enter. If they ever arrive [beyond the allowable period], these will be returned to the country of origin,” de Mesa said in a previous interview.

Meanwhile, the BPI approved and issued 267 SPSICs in August for the purchase of 482,723.99 MT of imported rice. Of this, 258 were used, translating to 369,901.23 MT rice arrivals.

The agency also approved 27 SPSICs as of September 10, which De Mesa said were import clearances that covered specialty rice varieties.

Source : businessmirror