Bureau of Customs officials led by Commissioner Bien Rubio inspects a warehouse in Balagtas, Bulacan, which are storing sacks of rice imported from Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand. BOC was joined by House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez and other lawmakers in ensuring that the country has an adequate supply of rice, amid rising prices and fears of a shortage. (Photo from the Bureau of Customs)
MANILA, Philippines — Three warehouses in Bulacan found to be storing a total of about 202,000 sacks of imported rice grains have been padlocked by the Bureau of Customs (BOC).
The supplies are said to be worth around P505 million and reportedly came from Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand.
BOC Commissioner Bien Rubio said it closed the depots of Great Harvest Rice Mill Warehouse, San Pedro Warehouse, and FS Rice Mill Warehouse on Thursday.
The storage facilities are inside the Intercity Industrial Complex in Barangay San Juan, Balagtas town.
Bureau of Customs officials led by Commissioner Bien Rubio inspects a warehouse in Balagtas, Bulacan, which are storing sacks of rice imported from Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand. BOC was joined by House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez and other lawmakers in ensuring that the country has an adequate supply of rice, amid rising prices and fears of a shortage. (Photo from the Bureau of Customs)
“I have ordered the owners of these warehouses to present the necessary documents that will support its rice importation, as well as the amount of rice they have been keeping in these warehouses,” Rubio said in a statement.
“Smuggling agricultural products, in particular rice, as this is a staple food in every Filipino home, poses a grave threat to our economy,” he explained.
“It creates a ripple effect that impacts the core of our agricultural sector—our farmers,” the commissioner added.
Philippine Coast Guard Task Force Aduana operatives teamed up with BOC in the closure of the warehouses.
Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, House committee on agriculture and food chairperson and Quezon First District Representative Wilfrido Mark Enverga and ACT-CIS party-list Representative Erwin Tulfo accompanied the agents.
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