LTO to help ensure smooth delivery of rice nationwide
In support of the food security emergency declared by the Department of Agriculture (DA) earlier this week to drive down rice retail prices, the Land Transportation Office (LTO) has ordered its regional directors and heads of law enforcement units to assist cargo trucks delivering rice across the country.
In a statement on Wednesday, LTO chief and Assistant Secretary Vigor Mendoza II said their assistance was aimed at ensuring the “unhampered and smooth” delivery of rice to various areas in the country, particularly those identified as having a shortage or “extraordinary increase in rice prices.”
“We will make available some of our personnel to escort cargo trucks that would be tapped to deliver rice from the point of origin to point of destination,” he added.
Mendoza said the LTO would be coordinating with the DA and other government agencies about its efforts as he also asked regional chiefs to do the same in their areas.
“We will continuously monitor and get updates regarding this matter in order for us to plan and implement the necessary assistance that we in the LTO can provide,” he added.
Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. issued on Feb. 3 a memorandum declaring a national food emergency on rice to allow the government to effectively address the “extraordinary rise” in retail prices.
DA objective
He said the goal of the DA would be to bring down prices to the 2023 levels of P41 per kilogram for regular milled rice and P45 per kg for well-milled rice.
The emergency declaration also allows the National Food Authority to sell its rice stocks to local governments, corporations that are owned or controlled by the national government and other government agencies.
