₱53 per kilo SRP eyed on local rice

The Department of Agriculture is preparing to introduce a suggested retail price of ₱53 per kilogram for locally produced rice as part of efforts to stabilize market prices while keeping the staple affordable for consumers.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said Thursday that the formal issuance of the SRP is expected this week and will mainly serve as a pricing reference for both retailers and buyers.

“Suggested lang (It’s only suggested) basically, we are just informing the people, the formal memo will be next week (this week),” Tiu Laurel said in an interview.

According to the agriculture chief, the proposed ₱53-per-kilo benchmark emerged after consultations with rice millers and industry stakeholders, who considered the price level “acceptable.”

The planned SRP is intended to strike a balance between ensuring farmers earn enough from their harvests and protecting consumers from excessive rice prices.

Tiu Laurel, however, clarified that the government cannot impose a mandatory floor price for palay or unhusked rice under current free-trade rules.

“Walang floor price for almost anything in free trade, while we can suggest lang (only), like in SRP, unless may batas tayo na pwede kang magdeklara ng (unless we have a law that you can declare a) floor price. Technically, the DA can only suggest,” he explained.

Apart from the SRP for local rice, the DA is also moving ahead with the full implementation of the ₱50-per-kilo cap on imported rice with 5 percent broken grains.

The agency said the ceiling price already allows a reasonable profit margin for importers, traders, and retailers, considering the estimated landed cost of imported rice at around ₱37 to ₱38 per kilo.

Based on the DA’s Bantay Presyo monitoring as of Thursday, imported premium rice in Metro Manila was being sold between ₱48 and ₱60 per kilo. Imported well-milled rice ranged from ₱48 to ₱50 per kilo, while imported regular-milled rice sold for ₱42 to ₱43 per kilo.

For locally sourced rice, premium varieties were priced between ₱50 and ₱60 per kilo, while both well-milled and regular-milled local rice were selling at around ₱50 per kilo.