By Chloe Mari A. Hufana, Reporter
PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. has ordered a 60-day suspension of rice imports starting Sept. 1, in a move aimed toward protecting Filipino farmers affected by low rough rice prices throughout the harvest season.
The President acted on the suggestion of the Department of Agriculture (DA) after consultations along with his Cabinet while on a five-day state visit to India, acting Presidential Communications Secretary Dave M. Gomez told reporters on Wednesday.
“[The move is] to guard local farmers reeling from low palay prices during this current harvest season,” he said.
Mr. Gomez said there are not any plans to act on the DA’s suggestion to hike the rice tariff to 25% from the present 15%.
“We’ll still see if we’d like to resort to that. Immediately, the choice is to suspend all rice importation for 60 days starting Sept. 1,” he added.
The Philippines is the world’s biggest rice importer, having brought in 2.44 million metric tons (MT) as of end-July, based on Bureau of Plant Industry data. The country imported 4.7 million MT last yr and is projected to exceed that volume this yr.
In June, Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel, Jr., told the House of Representatives he had really helpful step by step restoring the rice import tariff to its original 35% rate from 15%, which was set under Executive Order (EO) No. 62 signed by Mr. Marcos in June 2024.
The 35% rate, valid until 2028, is subject to review every 4 months.
The talk comes as Philippine inflation slowed to 0.9% in July, the bottom since October 2019, in keeping with data released on Tuesday by the Philippine Statistics Authority.
Food prices dropped, including a 15.9% year-on-year decrease in rice prices, helping ease overall price pressures.
“The suspension is a more calibrated motion — one which we are able to quickly reverse if needed… It gives us the pliability to act fast to guard each our farmers and our consumers. A premature tariff hike, alternatively, could backfire and would take for much longer to undo,” Mr. Tiu Laurel said in a separate statement.
He said the two-month pause on rice imports would allow the DA to evaluate the impact on palay prices and the market.
“If this strategy results in higher farmgate prices and higher income for our farmers, we may now not need to boost the tariff,” he said.
Former Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar said the temporary suspension of rice imports is anticipated to learn Filipino farmers by allowing them to secure higher prices throughout the harvest season.
Since imported rice typically arrives 60 days after ordering, the timing supports the local market without disrupting supply, he added.
“The 60-day suspension is sweet enough to attain meaningful impact on our rice industry and market,” Mr. Dar said via Viber.
“Inflation might be at very low levels, [and] we’re also in a position to manage enough supply,” he added. “It’ll all the time be obligatory to pursue a balanced strategy for a win-win arrangement — the farmers getting [a] fair price [for] their produce and the consuming public for a good price as well.”
Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura Executive Director Jayson H. Cainglet said the 60-day halt on rice imports offers little real profit to Filipino farmers, as rice tariffs remain at 15% and unmilled rice prices are expected to remain low.
He argued that EO 62 didn’t protect local producers or stabilize the market, with importers in a position to time shipments across the suspension. With warehouses already full, there isn’t a urgent need for brand spanking new imports.
“Given these realities, essentially the most effective and urgent plan of action is to revert rice import tariffs to their previous levels: 35% for Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) imports [and] 50% for non-ASEAN imports,” Mr. Cainglet said via Viber.
Fermin D. Adriano, a former undersecretary on the DA, called the initiative a “political move.”
“If I’m [a] trader, having huge stocks in my warehouses, I’ll just wait for the 2 months to lapse before I resume importation,” he said via Viber.
“It takes around two months for [negotiations] with Vietnamese sellers and [the] actual arrival of rice imports. This is clearly only a political move.”