Edith Regalado
Philippine Star

DAVAO CITY – Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap assured the people yesterday that there is sufficient rice supply to last even beyond the end of the year.

“We have more than enough supply of rice that would last us for the next six months, to the end of 2008 and even beyond that,” said Yap, who arrived here to join the party of President Arroyo for a provincial sortie in Southern Mindanao.

Yap said the Philippines continues to buy rice from foreign sources while there has also been an increase in domestic rice production.

“So that is why we can sustain our rice supply even during such periods,” Yap said.

He said the Philippines is not among the 36 countries in the world that were identified as areas with food security problems.

“We are not even among the nine countries in Asia that were said to be in deep trouble with their food security,” Yap added.

He also stressed that rice prices in the Philippines are lower compared to Thailand and Vietnam where the National Food Authority (NFA) buys most of its rice.

Yap was reportedly fuming mad when he saw the long queues of people buying NFA rice at a public market yesterday morning.

“That should not be the case. There is no reason that people have to line up because there is enough supply of rice,” he said.

Yap said he instructed NFA officials here to double if not triple the rice allocations for poor consumers.

“It is really a matter of management. People do not have to move from one place to another just to look for affordable rice,” he added.

Yap likewise said higher rice prices have started to soften up following NFA’s recent release of quality rice at a much lower cost.

“There is no reason that retailers and traders will bring their prices higher because there is already enough supply even of quality rice,” he said.

Yap said he would meet with local government officials, rice traders and NFA representatives to improve the rice situation in the country.

“We have to talk this out with these people and make them understand the situation so as to avoid fluctuations in rice prices,” Yap added.