MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine government will now push through with its plan to import 300,000 metric tons (MT) of rice from Vietnam after the Vietnamese government decided to finally resume exporting rice to Asean countries to maintain adequate food supply in the region amid the new coronavirus pandemic.
The volume is on top of the 2.7 million MT of rice approved by the Bureau of Plant Industry this year, bringing the expected volume of rice imports to 3 million MT.
The Department of Agriculture’s (DA) pronouncement came just after weeks of assuring consumers that the country had enough rice supply. The DA projected last month a 94-day buffer stock by yearend.
Since the National Food Authority can no longer import rice under the rice tariffication law, Agriculture Secretary William Dar said the government-to-government importation would be undertaken by the Philippine International Trading Corp. under the Department of Trade and Industry.