Legarda Calls for Inquiry on Rising Cost of Rice

Senator Loren Legarda has called for a Senate inquiry on the actual state of rice supply in the country following the alarming rise in the cost of rice.

Legarda filed Senate Resolution 233, which calls for the said inquiry, noting that the price of the lowest variety of commercial grade rice available in the market rose from P27 to P34 per kilo within just a few months.

“The rise in the cost of rice in the past few months can imply either an insufficient supply in the market or the presence of manipulative forces adversely affecting the price dynamics of our staple food,” she said.

“It is also important to note that the country’s rice self-sufficiency targets are even more threatened by the ever increasing number and intensity of typhoons and other extreme weather events. Thus, we must look into the cause of this increasing rice cost and also review existing policies and programs aimed at rice self-sufficiency,” she added.

Legarda explained that the current scenario of constant price increases due to repeated supply shortages at the retail level may even be ominous of an impending rice crisis.

The Senator also reminded the National Food Authority (NFA) that part of its mandate is to bring down and stabilize the price of rice to a level that is more affordable to the public.