NFA says rice supply stable

As lean months set in, the country would still have a stable rice supply, the National Food Authority said Thursday. July to September are the lean months when palay production is at its lowest. NFA administrator Angelito Banayo clarified that the NFA bought palay "intensively" during the summer harvest. As of the first week of July, the NFA has some 40.7 million bags of rice or 2 million metric tons. This, Banayo said, will be sufficient for the next 10 months based on the agency's average daily rice sales of 110,355 bags. He added that the agency's rice inventory is also capable of sustaining the country's food security rice requirement for 56 days based on the country’s daily requirement of 36,300 MT. "NFA stock inventory at present is almost double the required 30-day food security buffer at the start of lean months," said Banayo. [See: Aquino administration wants rice subsidies stopped] Amid this assurance, food-security advocates has urged President Benigno Aquino III to investigate the huge debt incurred by the NFA during the Arroyo administration before considering the proposal to stop the NFA rice subsidy. The NFA's debt ballooned from P28 billion in 2003 to P150 billion in 2010. "Removing the rice subsidy will only result to more Filipino families going hungry, as even the current subsidy is not enough to guarantee access to affordable rice of the poor," Task Force Food Sovereignty (TFFS) said. TFFS noted that NFA started withdrawing its P18.25 per kilogram rice subsidy early this year. Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima earlier said that "a big part of NFA's deficit could be traced to its policy of buying rice at a high price and selling it low to subsidize consumers." Rice supply Problems in 2008 and the threat of El Niño phenomenon this year prodded the NFA to implement ways on how to improve its inventory. The agency is still eying to buy 12.25 million bags this year. The bulk of procurement is expected to peak during the main harvest starting October, further ensuring stability in supply while providing marketing assistance to farmers, the NFA said. —JE/VS, GMANews. TV