Sacks of NFA rice are piled up at a warehouse in Central Visayas. CDN Digital photo | Futch Anthony Inso
Cebu City, Philippines—The National Food Authority (NFA) assures the public that they have enough supply of NFA rice and that there’s no reason for them to go on panic-buying due to the threat of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).
NFA Central Visayas regional director Rocky Valdez told CDN Digital that they still have around 138,350 bags of rice in different warehouses in Central Visayas.
He said that the supply will still last for the next 79 days. NFA-rice is sold at P27 per kilogram.
“Why buy so many kung hindi mo naman kailangan within the next two months? Kung halimbawa kung na-quarantine tayo ng 30 days, mag-nonormalize naman yan after 30 days,” Valdez said
(Why buy so many if you won’t need it within the next two months? If you are quarantined for 30 days, it will eventually normalize after 30 days.)
Valdez, however, said that they are limiting the purchase of NFA-rice to 5 kilograms per customer to allow others have a chance of buying.
Aside from this, they are also limiting the supply of NFA-rice to their accredited retailers from 15 bags (small retailers) to 50 bags (big retailers) per week, while the rest of their supply will be allocated as buffer stocks which will be made available in time of disasters and calamities.
He added that the public can also choose to purchase commercial rice aside from NFA-rice, which are now cheaper due to the implementation of the Republic Act (R.A.) 11203 or the Rice Tariffication Law.
Valdez said there are also supplies that are coming from other regions of the country.
Under R.A. 11203, NFA is only mandated to procure locally produced palay, while the importation of commercial rice is delegated to private traders. /bmjo