THE National Food Authority (NFA) said on Thursday it has suspended the auction of the remaining 20,000 metric tons (MT) of its 2014 imported rice stocks, as farmers have started harvesting their summer crop.
NFA Administrator Renan B. Dalisay said that, even though the volume auctioned is low, it could send the wrong signal and distort the price and supply situation of rice in the domestic market.
“It would be unfair to our farmers for the NFA to unload stocks into the commercial market at this time, when they are selling their harvest,” Dalisay said in a statement.
To preserve the quality of the old rice stocks, which are more than six months old, the NFA’s Technical Research Services Department (TRSD) and the Food Development Center (FDC) recommended to “reprocess” it to ensure it would remain fit for human consumption.
The NFA has a “3-6-9” policy for corn, rice and palay—corn stocks are stored for a maximum of three months; milled rice, six months; and unmilled rice, nine months, to maintain the quality of these grains.
Because the imported rice stocks have been in the food agency’s warehouse for more than six months, the NFA Council earlier decided to auction it off, but it must be reprocessed by the winning bidder to maintain quality and suitability for human consumption.
“The stocks were part of the agency’s buffer requirements but due to the substantial presence of commercial rice in the market at competitive prices, the stocks were not able to move properly,” the NFA said.
Meanwhile, Dalisay said the NFA continues to release rice to farmers affected by El Niño through local government units (LGUs) and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).
He told the BusinessMirror the agency has already prepositioned enough rice supplies in all its warehouses. The NFA has also fast-tracked the withdrawal process for the LGUs and the DSWD, he said.