Philippines' Rice Supply Secure Through 2026, but Import Dependence Raises Concerns

The country's rice supply is still sufficient through the end of the year, as millions of tons of rice were imported and the harvest season has begun, the Department of Agriculture (DA) assured on Tuesday. "As far as food security natin sa rice for 2026, I'm happy to announce na we are quite secure sa ating rice requirement still end of 2026. As of last week, 3.8 million tons ang na-import ng ating bansa," Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu-Laurel Jr. said. "But nag-umpisa na rin po ang harvest season sa ating mga palayan. So far maayos naman ang presyo," he added. (As far as our food security for rice in 2026 goes, I'm happy to announce that we are quite secure in our rice requirement until the end of 2026. As of last week, our country has imported 3.8 million tons... But the harvest season in our rice fields has also started. So far, prices are good.) "Mukhang maayos pa rin ang harvest natin ngayong harvest season na ito, that should carry us over until the end of the year," Tiu-Laurel said. (It looks like our harvest this harvest season is still good; that should carry us over until the end of the year.) However, Gabriela Women's Party-list Representative Sarah Elago asked the DA how the country can reduce its rice imports. "Nananatili pa rin ang Pilipinas na number one rice importer sa buong mundo," Elago said. "At sa harap ng banta ng Super El Nino, climate emergency, mga gera at mga potensyal na disruptions sa ating global rice supply, hindi ba delikado sa ating food security na ang Pilipinas ay laki pa rin ng kanyang dependence sa ibang para sa kanyang pangunahing pagkain?" she added. (The Philippines remains the number one rice importer in the entire world. And in the face of threats like Super El Niño, climate emergency, wars, and potential disruptions to our global rice supply—isn't it dangerous for our food security that the Philippines still heavily depends on others for its staple food? What action is the DA taking regarding this?) In response, the DA chief said that it's important that there are more irrigated lands to sustain rice plantations. "Definitely, ang pangarap natin ay mabawasan ang ating dependency sa importasyon. Kaya napaka-importante na suportahan natin ang NIA sa pag-i-irrigate ng ating mga flat lands, lalo na sa rice production," Tiu-Laurel said. "Meanwhile, tuloy-tuloy ang development ang development ng inbred seeds at pati locally produced hybrid seeds natin," he added. (Definitely, our dream is to reduce our dependency on imports. That is why we must support the NIA in irrigating our flat lands, especially for rice production. Meanwhile, the development of inbred seeds as well as our locally produced hybrid seeds continues uninterrupted.) "Actually, unti-unting tumataas ang ating yield per hectare base sa datos. So we are in the right path, but we really need more irrigated lands," he added. (Actually, our yield per hectare is gradually increasing based on the data. So we are on the right path, but we really need more irrigated lands.) The DA earlier said that the Philippines is not keen on imposing a ban on imported rice as the country prepares for the food supply impact of the strong El Niño later this year. Despite the country's rice imports surpassing 3 million metric tons, the agency said it will not let farm-gate prices of palay or unhusked rice for local farmers fall due to a higher volume of rice imports. —NB, GMA News