The National Food Authority (NFA) had to dispose of its remaining stocks to retailers this month to avoid letting it spoil and go to waste.
CDN Photo/Junjie Mendoza
Rice retailers in Cebu said they will limit their sale of National Food Authority (NFA) rice to three-to-five kilos per buyer daily to maximize their limited stocks for as long as possible.
“There are those who buy a lot for their hanging rice. We limit our sale so we can supply rice to the intended beneficiaries,” said Erwin Gok-ong, president of the Grain Retailers Confederation of the Philippines (Grecon) Cebu City North District.
If they don’t put a ceiling on their sale of NFA rice, Gok-ong said about 50 bags of NFA rice will be sold out in five hours.
Daily rice consumption in Cebu is pegged at 19,020 bags of rice, with NFA rice being the cheapest at P27 per kilo.
The NFA rice will be made available to 11 identified major markets in Metro Cebu, or about 92 outlets starting today.
In Cebu City, NFA rice can be bought from accredited retailers in T. Padilla, Taboan, Freedom Park and Carbon Public Market.
Public markets in the cities of Mandaue, Lapu-Lapu, Toledo, Carcar, Danao and Talisay as well as Consolacion town are also selling NFA rice.
NFA Cebu provincial Manager Ma. Belen Barbanida said there are 15,908 bags of NFA rice left for Metro Cebu.
Of that number, 4,000 bags of NFA rice were set aside for the supplemental feeding program of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD-7).
Gok-ong said their NFA outlet in Carbon Public Market has five members who are allowed to purchase 10 bags of NFA rice each.
NFA-7 Asst. Regional Director Yolanda Navarro said they had to distribute their rice to Metro Cebu retailers since their stocks will deteriorate after six months of storage.
Their stocks had been stored at their warehouses since October last year.