Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. on Thursday pushed for an all year-round large-scale trial of the P29 program, or the sale of aging but good quality rice stocks at PHP29 per kilogram to the vulnerable sector.
The vulnerable groups include members of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps), senior citizens, persons with disabilities, and solo parents, which account for around 6.9 million households nationwide.
“This large-scale trial will gather data from farm to retail, that’s why this cannot be done in a month or two months,” Laurel said in a statement, citing plans to expand the P29 program to 1,500 municipalities across the country.
“This will be (a) one-year program so we can review the entire chain, from buying seeds, planting them, utilizing fertilizer, sourcing fertilizer, harvesting, warehousing, up to the retailing stage, and determine where we could save on costs to lower prices to consumers,” he added.
Laurel said the large-scale trial shall also help DA assess if the government can sustain the low price of subsidized rice for a long period.
“We will assess the data comprehensively, backtrack to the farm level, and determine what needs to be done to make this program sustainable,” Laurel said.
On July 5, the DA launched the P29 large-scale trial in 10 Kadiwa centers in Metro Manila and Bulacan, including sites in the Bureau of Animal Industry dome and National Irrigation Administration (NIA) in Quezon City; Bureau of Plant Industry in Malate, Manila; Food Terminal Inc. in Taguig City; Philippine Fiber Industry Development Authority in Las Piñas; Bayani Fernando Central Terminal or BFCT and Barangay Fortune in Marikina; and sites in Caloocan and Valenzuela, and City of San Jose del Monte, Bulacan.
The DA needs to expand the program in Visayas and Mindanao by August or September.
Besides the P29 program, the DA also plans to launch the Rice for All program or the sale of mixed imported and local well-milled rice at PHP45/kg. to PHP48/kg to benefit the general public. (PNA)
