The National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) is “quite optimistic” that food inflation will start to decelerate in the coming months.

“Are better days ahead? Yes, I am quite optimistic that we are moving in that direction,” NEDA Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said in a Palace press briefing Tuesday.

Balisacan said the high food inflation recorded in June 2024 was due to “a confluence of factors,” such as the extreme drought due to the El Niño phenomenon, the unsteady global supply, and the African swine fever.

“So, those are some of the things that have happened in the past and our efforts in the past few months have been to address those issues particularly in agriculture,” he said.

Balisacan also cited the increase in the proposed 2025 budget of the Department of Agriculture which will help stabilize food prices.

The increase in the budget of agriculture is “very high” compared to many other sectors, the NEDA chief said.

The country’s headline inflation decelerated to 3.7 percent in June from 3.9 percent in May, well within the government’s 2 percent to 4 percent target.

Meanwhile, food inflation rose to 6.5 percent from 6.1 percent in May due to higher prices of vegetables, meat, and corn. (PNA)