An official of the Department of Agriculture (DA) on Wednesday said at least 90 percent of retailers in Metro Manila are compliant with the rice price ceiling set by the government. ‘We are part of the team that monitors prices in our markets and here at NCR (National Capital Region), we are proud to say that 90 percent or more are able to comply with our price cap that has been set,’ DA-Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) director Glenn Panganiban said in a briefing over PTV’s Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon. He said the BPI, together with other agencies such as the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), the DA and the Department of the Interior and Local Government, are monitoring the prices of rice in Metro Manila. Panganiban said they would recommend the lifting of the price ceiling to the President once the DA and DTI find that the staple’s prices are already stable. Under Executive Order 39 (EO), the price ceiling for regular and well milled rice is at PHP41 and PHP45, respectively. Panganiban also reported that rice supply in the country is sufficient. ‘Our sufficiency is increasing through the years. Our sufficiency of local production is at 80 to 90 percent and we complement that with our imports so I think, what you are asking about is the supply enough? Yes, we have enough,’ he added.
Source: Philippines News Agency
