THE National Food Authority (NFA) will auction up to 60,000 metric tons (MT) of ageing rice inventory starting next month, according to the Department of Agriculture (DA).
The auction is intended to free up warehouse space to facilitate the NFA’s domestic rice procurement operations in the face of a two-month rice import suspension, the DA said in a statement.
“We’re essentially hitting three birds with one stone: avoiding supply shortfalls, clearing space so NFA can buy more palay from local farmers, and preventing spoilage of ageing rice,” Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel, Jr. said.
Before the auction, government relief agencies would have the first call to buy the rice in September, NFA Administrator Larry Lacson said.
NFA stocks are classified as ageing starting on the third month after milling.
The auction will feature floor prices ranging from P25.01 to P27.96 per kilo, depending on how long the rice has been stored.
The NFA’s current reserves amount to 450,000 MT, equivalent to 12 days of demand.
The auction will try to sell off roughly 1.2 million sacks of rice — about 13% of total reserves.
With the harvest approaching, the NFA said it is pursuing optimal solutions that ensure market stability, warehouse efficiency, and support for farmers. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza
