No hoarding of rice - NFA

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines - The National Food Authority denies hoarding NFA imported rice in the city as a way to control its prices in the region.

The NFA does not hoard imported rice as it will “eat up the space” at the warehouse, NFA provincial director John Robert Hermano renounce accusations of local rice retailers in the city.

The city of Zamboanga alone consumes an average of five thousand bags of NFA rice a day, said Hermano.

Most of its rice, imported from Vietnam and Cambodia are being sold at NFA accredited rice dealers, Bigasan sa Parokya and Department of Social Welfare and Development’s (DSWD) Tindahan Natin.

Hermano also said, imported rice has a quality life span of six months.

“It will be a lost for NFA,” if NFA rice will not be disposed to accredited rice retailers, said Hermano.

Local rice retailers earlier complain NFA intentionally sells high priced imported NFA rice to them as a way to hoard the rice for the advantage of “capitalist rice traders”.

Hermano urges local rice traders to come in the open and report to them, of any hoarding being perpetuated by other traders in collusion with NFA personnel.

With the average rice consumption of Zamboanga City, Hermano said, they still have enough stocks of rice.

The NFA is not allowed also to sell above the allowable rice consumption “ceiling” of the area.

NFA rice are being sold at the average of 25 – 32 pesos per kilo, depending on the source of import.