NFA ALLOTS P6.7-B TO BUY
FARMERS’ PALAY PRODUCE
By Manny Piñol
The National Food Authority (NFA) yesterday launched its national local paddy rice procurement program in San Jose, Mindoro Occidental by offering an additional incentive of P3 per kilo, on top of the P17.70 per kilo buying price for clean and dry paddy rice.
The P3 additional incentive per kilo marks the first time that the NFA provided a higher payment for the farmers’ produce since 2008 when the buying price of palay was increased from P11 to P17.
An initial fund of P6.7-B has been allocated for the aggressive local palay procurement program as the NFA builds up its buffer stocks in compliance with President Rody Duterte’s directive to increase the rice reserves of the country.
The local procurement program with the added incentive is also aimed at establishing a support price for farmers who maybe affected by the lifting of the Quantitative Restrictions (QR) on imported rice.
The program is expected to procure an estimated 320,000 metric tons of clean and dry palay or 224,000-metric tons of rice.
In addition to the 750,000-metric tons to be imported before the end of the year, the NFA will have an estimated 1-million metric tons of rice buffer stocks by the start of 2019.
Yesterday, in a forum attended by farmers of Mindoro Occidental, I signed the Memorandum Circular implementing the Buffer Stock Incentive (BSI) which effectively increases the earnings of farmers to P20.70 per kilo.
The signing signalled a national-wide adjustment of the buying price in 37 provinces with surplus rice production.
In addition to the BSI, the Department of Agriculture (DA), now the Mother Agency of the NFA, will provide drying facilities in the NFA Buying Stations which the farmers could use for free.
A reward program for farmers associations and cooperatives who will deliver their palay to the NFA has also been started.
Farm machinery and equipment will be given to farmers associations and cooperativea who will deliver huge volumes to the NFA.
The machinery and equipment will include Turtle Tillers, Power Tillers, Farm Tractors, Transplanters, Harvesters and Solar Powered Irrigation Systems.
A DA technical working group is now drafting guidelines for additional incentives like free rice seeds and free fertilizers for farmers groups who will deliver their produce to the NFA.
(Photos of the launching of the BSI program in San Jose, Mindoro Occidental yesterday were taken by the Biyaheng Bukid Team of the Dept. of Agriculture.)
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