NFA Returns to the Department of Agri for better coordination

The National Food Authority (NFA) said that its transfer to the control of the Department of Agriculture (DA) will help the two agencies better coordinate rice procurement and imports.

This will “give the two agencies the ability to synchronize agricultural policies like the timing of rice importation and market intervention as well as strengthen farmer assistance through NFA’s marketing channels,” said the NFA in an earlier statement.

President Rodrigo R. Duterte signed Executive Order No. 62 last Sept.19, placing the NFA, Philippine Coconut Authority, and the Fertilizer and Pesticides Authority under the DA. These three, along with the National Irrigation Administration used to be under the DA but were transferred by former president Benigno C. Aquino III under the control of the Office of the President.

Presidential Spokesperson Herminio L. Roque said in a briefing that the DA has domestic production data to aid in the decision of when and how much rice to import. Roque says that this data will “make the process of determining when to import more efficient.”

Roque added that the three agencies were only removed from the DA during the previous administration to give Senator Francis N. Pangilinan a job as head of food security and agricultural modernization.

Sufficient rice supply post-Ompong

Meanwhile, the NFA assures the public that the rice inventory is sufficient in the regions affected by Typhoon Ompong (international name: Mangkhut). In a statement, NFA Spokesperson Rex C. Estoperez mentioned that there are at least 840,000 bags in the warehouses, and that the lower inventories in Regions II and III were augmented by transferring 12,000 bags to Region II.

“Because of the typhoons, we will propose to the NFA Council to allow us to import in advance. Many of our crops are damaged so we have to import earlier,” adds Estoperez.

Additional NFA rice outlets will be opened, which results from the signing of a memorandum of agreement with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Philippine Amalgamated Supermarkets Association, Inc.

The NFA added that there is also a possibility that the approved rice imports will be fast-tracked to arrive before December to ensure continuous supply.

Meanwhile, NFA Regional Director Rocky L. Valdez said that Region II has sufficient rice stocks, and they are still awaiting the additional rice allocation of 155,000 bags from Subic.

“Unloading in Subic was obviously slowed down by inclement weather. That is why we asked NFA-NCR to transfer an additional 50,000 bags to Region II while our rice allocation from Subic is not yet delivered,” explains Mr. Valdez.

via Business Mirror / Reicelene Joy N. Ignacio, Arjay L. Balinbin