NFA: Nearly a tenth of palay buying target now OK

The government has bought almost a tenth of its targeted palay (unmilled rice) procurement from farmers for 2011, National Food Authority (NFA) administrator Angelito Banayo said Wednesday. Banayo said the government has procured 79,172 metric tons (MT) of unmilled rice for the first four months of the year, or 9.1 percent of its 870,000 MT target for 2011. The NFA had earlier made a commitment toward this goal even after the government slashed its 2011 budget to P2.5 billion from P8 billion. The 870,000 MT target will account for 5 percent of the estimated 17.4-million MT palay output for the year. The NFA funds its palay buying program from commercial loans as well as the sale of the agency’s milled rice. The agency’s palay inventory is part of government’s rice buffer stock, which should not drop below 30 days’ worth of rice supply at any given time. PE/VS, GMA News