THH PHITIPPINH STAR

THE PHILIPPINE STAF

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TUESDAV I SEPTEMBER T, 2O1O

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Palace releases PB B foi rice farmers amid imports

By JESS DIAZ Farriiers' leaders coin-
machineties and equipment. Agricultrlre Secretary William
The seeds and machiner- Dar did not show up, contrary plained that they would not
ation worse for them.
"We are losing money be-
P15 B for NFA
, Malacafiang has released P5 ies would be distributed to to the promise he conveyed to immediately benefit from the cause the buying price is less
sought
billion to help millions of rice farmers and their cooperatives the committee last week. P5 billion that is supposedly than our production cosf" he Lawmakers are pushing
farmers affected by the law between December and early Cayanan said Dar was at- allocated for them. said. for an additional Pl5-billion
allowing unrestricted imp orta- next yeat Cayanan said. tending tothe launching of the Former congressman Rafael Other leaders of the agricul- budget for the National Fbod
bion of rice. He said the remaining PL lending program under RCEF Mariano, who heads the leftist ture sector confirmed that pa- Authority (NFA) to procure
Agriculture officials told billion of the fund would be that would make production gtoup Kilusang Magbubukid lay prices have indeed fallen. more palay frpm local farm-
he House of Representatives allotted to training and exten- loans of up to P15,000 available ng Pilipinas, said the low Rosendo So of Samahang ers amid the drop in farmgate
:ommitte" ott ugiiculture that sion services. to farmers. prices of pa$y make the situ- Sinag ng Magsasaka said ricE prices as a result of thb defuge
rf the P5billion, P2 billion has Cayanan added that P166 importations last year and of cheap iniported rice. 1
)een released to the Philip- million has been released to this year totaling 3.9 million During the House hearing
oine Rice Research Institute Land Bank and PL09 million metric tons (78 million bags) on the effects of the rice tariffi-
.PhilRice) and P2 billion to the to the Development Bank of caused rice and palay prices cationlaw, Enverga heede{ the
Philippine Center for Posthar- the Philippines for lending to to go down. calls of farmers to augmentthe
irest Development and Mecha- farmers. So said if rice prices are NFA s procurement budget.
iization (Philmec). The P5 billion is half of dovm, traders wouli nafurally "I support the move to in-
During the hearing yester- the PlO-billion rice competi- offer low prices for palay. crease the NFAbudget.I think
lay, leaders of farmers' orga- tiveness enhancement fund He said imports should have we do not have the capabilities
rizations and the agriculture (RCEF) the law mandates to be been calibrated to keep a bal- yet to compete with the liberal-
;ector complained that'palay set aside to help rice farmers. ance in rice and palay phces. izat:ron of rice in the country,"
rrices havebeenfalling and are Yesterday's hearing by Elias Inciong who heads the Enverga told reporters.
row at the P8 to P10 per kilo the committee on agriculture United Broilers AssociatiorL "They.will have difficulty
evel, orP2to P4less than their chaired by Quezon l{ep. Mark said he attended the hearing to in the open market to sell
rruduction cost ofPl2per kilo. Enverga is its first on the im- warn farmers and consumers their produce. At least with
Undersecretary Ariel Cuy- plementation of the law that rice import liberalization the NF& they are assured that
man said PhilRice would be R"p. Florencio Noel of par- would not benefit them. majority of their produce will
n charge of developing and ty-list group An Waray, Enver- "That is our experience with be bought by the govemment
rrocuring certified seeds while ga's senior vice chairman,.la- A worker arranges sacks of NFA rice at a warehouse in Quezon broilers and poulbqr products, " at a high price," he added.
.
)hilmec would produce orbuy mented that newly appointed City yesterday. FoysANros he said. With Louise Maureen Simeon

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