NFA-7 to distribute rice to 11 retailers until supply lasts
As a way of averting the continued increase in the price of commercial rice, the National Food Authority (NFA)-7 will start distributing NFA rice to retailers in 11 major markets in Metro Cebu until its supply lasts.
NFA-7 Information Officer Olma Marie Bayno said that members of the Grains Retailers Confederation of the Philippines-Cebu Chapter, in a meeting last Wednesday, have agreed and identified the 11 major markets.
Bayno said that it was agreed that each retailer of these major markets will be supplied with ten sacks of NFA rice per week.
The 11 major markets that were identified are Carbon, Freedom Park, T. Padilla, Taboan, Mandaue, Lapu-Lapu, Consolacion, Danao, Tabunok, Carcar and Toledo.
Last February 2, the NFA-7 stopped its rice allocation to their 1,018 accredited NFA retailers in Cebu due to its thinning rice reserves after the NFA decided not to import rice.
As of February 26, there are a total of 93,261 bags of NFA rice available for Central Visayas.
"Ang pag-suplay namo og NFA rice ngadto sa 11 major market kay until supply lasts," Bayno said.
She added that NFA rice retailers in Bohol, Dumaguete and Siquijor were already given NFA rice since last week.
"Nadugay ang retailers sa Cebu kay mas daghan man gud sila," Bayno further said.
Due to the non-importation of rice, the price of commercial rice went up by as much as P2 to P5 per kilo.
However, despite of the scarcity of the NFA rice, the rice industry has remained stable in Central Visayas and that there is no rice crisis.
NFA-7 Assistant Regional Director Yolanda Navarro earlier said that aside from the 93,261 bags of NFA rice, there are still 680,000 bags of commercial rice and 1,158,249 bags of household rice or a total of P1,933,945 bags of rice which is expected to last for 57 days.