THE National Food Authority in Central Visayas (NFA-7) will resume its distribution of NFA rice to at least 11 identified major markets in Metro Cebu, starting on Monday.
Regional Director Yolanda Navarro of NFA-7 said they would use a portion of the 15,908 sacks of rice “buffer stocks” or stocks intended for calamities for the distribution for two reasons: the stocks might get spoiled, and to address the need for cheap NFA rice in the market.
Navarro said that they had to dispose the remaining stocks in the warehouse before their quality would start to deteriorate after a year in storage.
“Ang bigas hindi mo kayang patagalin. So we have to dispose it and replenish it and palitan ng bagong inventory,” she said, noting that the NFA rice in stocked in the warehouse had already reached its sixth month this March.
Adding also the high demand of the cheaper rice due to the unstable of prices of commercial rice in the market.
About 15,908 bags of NFA rice left for Metro Cebu, which are supposed to be the buffer stock, at least 4,000 bags of it were already sold for the supplemental feeding program of the Department of Social Welfare and Development in Central Visayas (DSWD-7), Navarro said.
She also said that they also resume in supplying NFA rice to jails.
Metro Cebu retailers
For the remaining 11,908 bags of NFA rice, this will be distributed to 11 identified major markets or at least 92 outlets in Metro Cebu.
In Cebu City, the NFA rice will be made available in T. Padilla, Taboan, Freedom Park and Carbon Public Market.
Accredited retailers in Mandaue City, Lapu-Lapu City, Toledo City, Carcar City, Danao City, Consolacion and Tabunok in Talisay City will also receive the supply of NFA rice.
There are about 1,018 NFA-accredited retailers in Cebu, but only 315 retailers who are members of Grecon can initially buy at least 10 bags of rice each from the NFA-7.
Grecon
“Kon ang tanan among tagaan dili man gyod maapod, so maong among gipaagi sa Grecon,” NFA Cebu Provincial Manager Ma. Belen Barbanida said.
Barbanida was referring to the recent meeting with NFA-7 and the Grain Retailers Confederation (Grecon) where they decided on the “needy” areas to prioritize in the distribution.
The NFA rice supply left is the 15-percent broken which is sold for P32 per kilo.
She said they are targeting to make the NFA rice supply last in the market up to the end of this month, in which would also help in stabilizing the prices of rice.
Navarro said that after that she hoped that NFA-7 could buy palay from the farmers this harvest season.
She also said that they were also waiting for the importation of 250,000 Metric Tons (MT) of rice to arrive by June.