Gov’t expects record rice imports this year
Rice imports may hit a new record this year amid expectations the country would need to increase its stockpile for lean months following substantial losses from typhoons.
Even farmers conceded the production losses caused by the typhoons with a group asking the government for farm subsidies to boost production, if not to recover the losses.
“Other farmers are already able to [harvest more than the average rice yield] as long as they have enough capital, so it is not impossible,” said Cathy Estavillo of the Amihan National Federation of Peasant Women.
The group said the current yield of 4.17 metric tons (MT) of rice per hectare could be increased to 5 MT per hectare and raise the country’s average rice yield per hectare by 20 percent.
Estavillo pointed out that the provinces of Nueva Ecija, Bulacan, Pampanga and Tarlac in Central Luzon already produce rice yields higher than the country’s average, except for the bad weather.
However, it will take months, if not years, to hike farm output and the Department of Agriculture (DA) has conceded that rice production was already expected to fall short of the target even before the series of typhoons that hit the country recently.
Former Agriculture Undersecretary Leocadio Sebastian said on Wednesday that even before Severe Tropical Storm “Kristine” (international name: Trami) last month, palay (unmilled rice) production already slumped by 900,000 MT in the first three quarters of 2024.
Sebastian explained that the country needs to maintain “a good ending [stock balance]” to ensure sufficient supply ahead of the lean months when local output has never managed to meet increased demand.
The volume of rice imports entering the country is estimated at 4.2 million MT by year-end, Sebastian said, citing DA projections.
“That means in November and December, we will probably be expecting another 400,000 MT minimum,” Sebastian told attendees of the World Rice Conference held in Pasay City.
