PBBM SUSPENDS RICE IMPORTATION FOR 60 DAYS STARTING SEPT. 1

PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Wednesday ordered the suspension of rice importation for 60 days, effective September 1, in response to low prices for palay (unmilled rice).

“To protect local farmers reeling from low palay prices during this current harvest season, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. today announced the suspension of all rice importation for 60 days beginning Sept. 1, 2025,” Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Secretary Dave M. Gomez said in a statement on Wednesday.

President Marcos issued the directive after consulting with Cabinet members on the sidelines of his five-day State Visit to India from August 4 to 8 and upon the recommendation of Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr., Gomez said.

The Department of Agriculture (DA) reported that bumper rice harvests across the world, the lifting of India’s rice export ban, and a record-high 9.08 million metric tons of palay produced by the Philippines in the first half of the year have put downward pressure on prices, particularly from exporting countries.

“With cheaper imports flooding the market, reports indicate that some private traders are now buying palay for as low as P8 to P10 per kilo, well below the production cost of P12 to P14 per kilo. Farmers have attributed this sharp decline to the influx of cheaper imported rice,” the DA said in a statement on Tuesday.

On Monday, Gomez announced that the DA recommended to the President and the Cabinet the temporary suspension of rice imports and a gradual return of rice tariffs from the current 15 percent to eventually 35 percent.

Malacañang on Tuesday defended President Marcos’ constitutional authority to adjust tariff rates, particularly on rice imports.

Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary and Palace Press Officer Claire Castro clarified that while Congress can impose tariffs, it may delegate this authority to the President to enable timely and responsive economic interventions.

“Sa panahon ng krisis, kailangang may flexibility ang Pangulo para makapag-adjust agad. Kung tatanggalin ang kapangyarihan niyang ito, magiging mahirap ang mabilis na pagtugon,” Castro told reporters in New Delhi during a press briefing on the sidelines of President Marcos’ State Visit to India.