A market vendor waits for customers in front of their rice and grains store inside public market in Quezon City. George Calvelo, ABS-CBN News/file 

MANILA – Lawmakers slammed on Wednesday the Department of Agriculture’s (DA) P58 per kilo maximum suggested retail price (MSRP) for premium imported rice, urging the agency to reduce it.

Maximum suggested retail price for imported rice set at P58 per kilo: agri dept

During the House Quinta Committee hearing, they questioned DA’s basis for the MSRP, with one lawmaker saying it is higher than prevailing rice prices in some markets. 

“Customs also gave us the same figure: P35/kilo landed cost. Pinakamahal P39. Kaya ang tanong, bakit naman si DA, may MSRP na P58? Saang planeta po ito nanggaling?" House Deputy Majority Leader and Iloilo 1st District Representative Janette Garin said.  

House Deputy Minority Leader and ACT Teachers Party List Representative France Castro said the MSRP may end up enticing vendors to hike prices to match it. 

“Kasi hahabulin ng manininda ‘yon eh, ng mga retail price, ‘yong mga sinasabi ninyo,” Castro said.

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Agriculture Undersecretary Asis Perez said that the MSRP is based on landed cost plus “reasonable mark up” for the entire supply chain from the importer to the wholesaler and then retailer. Perez said the price ceiling for premium rice will also mean lower prices for lower quality varieties.

“But we are also monitoring ‘yong price po ng bigas na bumababa po ngayon.  So that can change depending on our monitoring,” he noted.

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The DA is also open to proposals for an MSRP for other rice varieties, Perez said. The P58 per kilo MSRP for premium imported rice will start on January 20. If the DA finds the rice prices to still be “unreasonable” after the implementation of the MSRP, it is not ruling out the possibility of recommending a price ceiling, according to Perez. 

“The other option that we had which we already considered under the Price Act is to set up probably ‘yong ilalagay po namin, price ceiling na, based on unreasonable prices,” he said. 

The DA said tariffs have gone down by P5 per kilo even as international market prices have also fallen. Based on these two factors, the landed cost of rice should have gone down by P8.50, Perez said. If retail prices don't fall accordingly, this means that prices have become "unreasonable" and a price ceiling can be imposed, Perez said. 

"Pero ngayon hindi pa po natin ginagawa ‘yon, gumamit lang po tayo no’ng tinatawag nating suggested retail price,” Perez added. 

EXTRAORDINARY INCREASE IN RICE PRICES? 

The National Price Coordinating Council is looking at the possibility of declaring “extraordinary increase in rice prices”, to allow the DA to declare a food security emergency, according to Director Cherryl Carbonell of the Department of Trade and Industry. 

A declaration of food security emergency will allow the sale of more affordable rice from the stockpiles of the National Food Authority to the public.

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“The National Price Coordinating Council met yesterday, and we are looking at ‘yong possibility po of declaring that there is an extraordinary increase in price, to allow the DA Secretary to declare a food security emergency. But we’re still working on the resolution,” Carbonell said. 

Based on the Philippine Statistics Authority data, rice retail prices slowly declined from October to December 2024, but prices were still higher compared to 2023 levels.

When tariffs on imported rice were reduced to 15 percent from 35 percent in July last year, government economic managers said prices would go down by P5 to P6 per kilo. The PSA however noted in its following monthly inflation reports that the decrease in the prices of several rice varieties were miniscule and nowhere near what government economic managers projected.