A P20 per kilo rice price is what President Marcos is determined to achieve

President Marcos stated yesterday that the government is getting closer to its goal of bringing down the price of rice to P20 per kilo while pledging to maintain policies designed to ensure access to reasonably priced goods.

In order to enable farmers' products to be sold to consumers at lower prices, Marcos stated during the Kadiwa ng Pangulo program's launch in Pili, Camarines Sur, that the government is covering the hidden costs associated with their transportation.

He continued by saying that the decision made by his administration to increase the number of Kadiwa outlets—stores that sell goods at lower prices—has produced fruitful outcomes.

“For example, rice. My goal before assuming office is to lower the price of rice to P20 (per kilo). Hindi pa tayo umaabot doon, dahan-dahan palapit. Nasa P25 na lang tayo. Kaunti na lang, maibababa natin ‘yan (We are not yet there. We are inching towards that. We are at P25 per kilo. We are nearing that, we can lower that),” the President pointed out.

Reducing the price of rice to P20 per kilo was one of the campaign promises of Marcos during the 2022 presidential race. The administration has launched 500 Kadiwa ng Pangulo outlets nationwide to help farmers and producers secure direct access to markets. However, the farmers' group Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura (SINAG) cautioned Marcos yesterday, saying the P20-per-kilo rice should not result in a drop in farmgate prices of palay.

Cainglet noted that imported rice also went up due to the high cost of farm inputs, fuel and the depreciation of peso to the dollar. Marcos emphasized the need to boost production to lower the cost of producing palay, cut post-harvest losses, and remove non-productive players in the rice industry. His government also increased the supply of onions to lower the prices of the commodity.