Friday, July 09, 2004 NFA imports 119,000 bags of rice By Bobby S. Terencio
THE National Food Authority (NFA) has imported 119,000 bags of rice in a bid to stabilize the price of the Filipino staple food.
Salvador Dime, assistant provincial manager of NFA General Santos-Sarangani provincial office said the months of May until August are considered as lean months, which also contributed in increase in the prices of commercial rice.
Dime disclosed that the imported rice, called VWER 42 from Vietnam, arrived at Makar wharf Wednesday morning.
He said VWER 42 composition is 25 percent broken and 75 per cent head rice.
Unloading of the imported rice has already started Wednesday afternoon for distribution to NFA-accredited retailers.
The government rice agency sells the imported rice to accredited retailers at P15 per kilogram, which the latter sell at P16 per kilogram to consumers.
The NFA official said people in General Santos-Sarangani area are consuming around 4,800 bags of rice daily.
Dime said their participation in the market account for only between 30 to 35 percent.
The rest are being supplied by commercial rice traders.
The NFA provincial office here is disposing around 1,300 bags a day, according to Dime.
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