DA Speaks on P20 per Kilo Rice Program’s Resumption after May 2025 Polls
P20 PER KILO RICE – The Department of Agriculture announced that the affordable rice will also be sold in 32 areas in Luzon after the elections.
Following the advice of the Commission on Elections, the agriculture department decided to temporarily stop the selling of cheap rice. Comelec made the advice so the program won’t be linked to the May 2025 Elections.
According to DA, the rice sale will immediately resume on May 13. The department previously announced that it will be available in Visayas. However, it was met with criticisms from Vice Pres. Sara Duterte who questioned why the people in Luzon and Mindanao won’t have access to the affordable rice.
Duterte also stressed that the rice that will be sold must be fit for human consumption. Her statement deeply hurt the agriculture department which stressed that they are committed to delivering quality rice to the Filipinos.
The DA also called for a media conference wherein the officials ate the cooked NFA rice that will be sold for P20 per kilo. Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. also claimed that they cook and eat NFA rice in the department daily.
Recently, the agriculture department spoke on the areas where the P20 per kilo rice will be available after the elections. Based on a report on ABS-CBN News, aside from its availability for indigent families in the Visayas, the affordable rice will also be made available in 32 areas in Luzon.
DA Assistant Sec. Genevieve Guevarra said the launching of the rice program will be held on May 13. The affordable rice will first be available in the Kadiwa Centers in the following cities in Metro Manila on the said day:
- Caloocan
- Las Piñas
- Mandaluyong
- Navotas
- Pasay
- Quezon City
Based on the report, on May 15, the people in 23 other areas in Luzon will have access to the P20 per kilo rice. The agriculture department explained that it is because there are Kadiwa Centers that operate only on Thursdays to Saturdays.
The DA reiterated that the rice that will be sold for P20 per kilo is good for consumption. According to Guevarra, the rice which are aging stocks of the National Food Authority (NFA) have passed the quality control evaluation.
“Hindi naman tayo magbebenta ng unfit na bigas. Makakaasa po kayo na pag may nakita kaming may defect, hindi ito mabebenta,” the DA Assistant Secretary said.
Based on the report, Guevarra also explained why the P20 per kilo rice is a bit darker in color. According to the DA Assistant Secretary, it is because the rice produced by local farmers are not milled multiple times.
“Kapag ginigiling niyo ng paulit ulit, pumuputi. Ito kaunting giling lang kaya mayroon siyang specs,” she said.
The DA official further explained that the NFA rice that will be sold is a “buffer stock” and it is sold in lower costs if the rice won’t be used in calamity or emergency situations. Previously, following the halting of the rice sale, Vice Pres. Sara Duterte claimed that the government allegedly cannot deliver so it stopped the rice sale.