Max SRP for imported rice starts Jan. 20 – DA

P58 a kilo

MANILA, Philippines — The maximum suggested retail price (SRP) of P58 per kilo on imported rice will take effect on Jan. 20, after Executive Order 62 – which allowed a 15 percent tariff on the outsourced staple – failed to bring down the cost of rice.

“This maximum SRP aims to strike a delicate balance between business sustainability and the welfare of consumers and farmers. We must ensure the price of rice is fair and affordable even as we make sure that the rice industry remains profitable. We cannot allow the greed of a few to jeopardize the well-being of an entire nation,” Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said yesterday.

However, farmers’ group Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura (SINAG) yesterday maintained that the P58 per kilo SRP to be enforced by the Department of Agriculture (DA) is still high, saying the maximum SRP should only be P45 per kilo. 

Imported rice has been flooding the country as importations reached an “all-time high” 4.684 million metric tons in 2024. 

Tiu Laurel said the price of P58 per kilo was determined after extensive consultations with importers, retailers, rice industry stakeholders as well as government agencies and law enforcement bodies.

SINAG executive director Jayson Cainglet said that during the marathon hearing of the House quinta committee, importers promised that the retail price of imported rice could go down to between P42 and P45 per kilo once EO 62 is implemented.

“Prior to the implementation of E0 62, importers and the National Economic and Development Authority were in chorus for a P7 to 10 per kilo reduction in rice prices upon the effectivity of the 15 percent tariff on imported rice,” Cainglet said.

He added that the importers are still the winners with the DA’s decision to implement the P58 per kilo of rice.

“We’ve said all along that the savings of the importers on tariff reduction will not benefit the consumers. That’s why the tariff reduction is not the answer (to the high retail price of rice),” Cainglet stressed.

He said the landed cost of imported rice is only between P35 and P38 kilo, and the maximum SRP on imported rice should be pegged at P45.

Tiu Laurel said the maximum SRP will be implemented initially in Metro Manila, and will be reviewed every month to take into account several factors, including global prices of the grain.

“We think that if the current direction of global prices holds, the maximum will be lower after the review,” the DA chief said. 

“Based on our calculations, using data and profit margins provided by importers and retailers, imported five percent broken rice should not exceed P58 per kilo. For rice with a higher percentage of broken grains, the price should be much lower,” he explained.

Cainglet said the government should use the new Anti-Agriculture Economic Sabotage Act or Republic Act 12022 in going after unscrupulous traders.

“We’ve long suggested SRP, but with punitive action, using the new law as a basis for being non-bailable to anyone who is involved in profiteering of rice and other agriculture commodities,” he said.

President Marcos signed EO 62 in an effort to bring down the retail price of rice.

Based on monitoring of the DA in Metro Manila markets, the retail price of imported special rice was sold as high as P64 per kilo; imported premium rice, as high as P60 per kilo; imported well-milled rice, P54 per kilo and imported regular-milled rice, P48 per kilo.

Trade and Industry Secretary Cristina Roque gave assurance of the department’s support for the DA’s campaign to lower rice prices for Filipino consumers.

“The DTI fully supports the DA in all its initiatives. We will help in the monitoring and enforcement of prices set by the DA,” Roque said.

At the same time, Tiu Laurel has instructed Food Terminals Inc. (FTI), a government corporation under the DA, to begin selling rice through Kadiwa ng Pangulo centers and kiosks. 

He said rice options include five percent broken at P45 per kilo, 25 percent broken at P40 and 100 percent broken – also known as Sulit Rice – at P36 per kilo and P29 per kilo for the vulnerable sector which include indigents, persons with disabilities, senior citizens, single parents and indigenous people.

Tiu Laurel said rice that has been stored by the National Food Authority (NFA) for at least two months will be made available for resale to local government units in Metro Manila at P38 per kilo. 

“This initiative will help the NFA clear its warehouses in preparation for the upcoming harvest season. Our warehouses are filled to capacity, and I have directed NFA administrator Larry Lacson to have the rice milled immediately so we could saturate the market with fairer-price rice as we make space for the palay we plan to procure at a minimum of P23 per kilo for clean and dry this season,” he added.

 Lower priced tomatoes

In a related development, SINAG said the retail price of tomatoes should not exceed P200 per kilo as its farmgate price went down by 40 percent or between P90 and P120 per kilo from the previous P180 to P200 per kilo.

In a message to The STAR, Cainglet said the farmgate price of tomatoes in Palawan is only P40 per kilo. 

“The farmgate price of tomatoes dropped as many farmers harvested early,” he said. 

Based on monitoring of the DA in Metro Manila markets, the retail price of tomatoes still reached as high as P310 per kilo. 

The retail price of tomatoes soared to P360 per kilo after the New Year celebration.

“In Mindanao, the retail price of tomatoes is below P100 (per kilo). The problem is logistics,” Cainglet noted.

Agriculture Assistant Secretary and spokesman Arnel de Mesa has said that the DA has no plan to impose an SRP on tomatoes despite the spike in the cost of the farm product.

Red onions  

SINAG yesterday assured the public of an ample supply of red onions as the harvest season has started. 

Cainglet said the farmgate price remained stable between P50 and P60 per kilo for red onions, and between P70 and P80 per kilo for white onions over past weeks.  

He said that from November to December, many farmers suffered losses amid rotting of red bulbs in cold storage. “The onion growers did not receive any intervention from the government,” he noted. 

Cainglet added that the harvest season has started. “The onion farmers began their harvest that would pull down farmgate prices,” he said. 

Based on monitoring of the DA in Metro Manila markets, the retail price of red onions ranged between P100 and P180 per kilo; local white onions, between P110 and P160 per kilo and imported white onions, between P85 and P200 per kilo.

Meanwhile, various peasant groups held a protest at Litex Market in Quezon City yesterday, as they condemned the soaring retail price of rice and vegetables in the country.

Members of the Amihan National Federation of Peasant Women, Gabriela Women’s Party party-list, watchdog group Bantay Bigas and Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas said the government should act amid the increase in poverty incidence across the country.