Documenti di Didattica
Documenti di Professioni
Documenti di Cultura
http://fnbreport.ph/features/agriculture/the-rice-tariffication-law-explained-anrii-
IMAGE Pixabay
In light of recent events, one that has seen an uproar from Filipinos, concerns the Nueva
Ecija farmers selling their harvested rice for the measly amount of P7 per kilo. This is
connected to the Rice Tariffication Law.
ADVERTISING
Rice farmer and fisherman Rolando Merto, 57, still remembers November 2004, when
flash floods and mudslides swept through Infanta, Quezon Province. His village,
Barangay Bubuin, was one of the many communities that suffered from the disaster
triggered by a typhoon, along with those in Real and General Nakar, also in Quezon.
For farmers like him who rely on subsistence agriculture to feed families and for income,
the loss was severe, and even traumatic.
Communities saw bodies on the shore or buried in the mud, or dogs underneath cut
logs and uprooted trees. The fallen trees, locals say, were the consequence of
widespread illegal logging in the province.
Plantations were ruined and some locals had to rely on fishing, which was also difficult
due to weather conditions. Others ended up borrowing money from neighbors. Some
locals would agree it was the worst disaster the province has experienced in years, that
not even calamities brought about by more recent typhoons could compete.
Food insecurity
Merto said that during the days of the calamity, they did not have enough to eat. His
family no longer had enough bigas or rice grains. They had to ration their meals. Relief
efforts could not reach their area immediately, blocked by the flash floods, mudslides
and heavy rain. Some aid eventually arrived but locals said it had to be transported
across the sea. Many parts of the land area were uncultivated for a long time.
The time came when rice from the National Food Authority (NFA) was already being
sold in town, after relief goods had already run out after a month’s distribution. Merto
asked his son to buy a kilo. But when they cooked the rice, he said the rice smelled so
bad, he could not eat it.
He believes the NFA rice bags were kept in storage for so long (to reserve them for
calamities) it had gone stale. He said he tried to eat it, but he couldn’t. Hunger and
frustration brought tears to his eyes. He ended up just eating fish and the soup that
came with it. He still went to sleep with an unfilled stomach.
IMAGE Pixabay
In light of recent events, one that has seen an uproar from Filipinos, concerns the Nueva
Ecija farmers selling their harvested rice for the measly amount of P7 per kilo. This is
connected to the Rice Tariffication Law.
What is the Rice Tariffication Law (RTL)
It was in February 2019 that the Rice Tariffication Law, "An Act liberalizing the
importation, exportation, and trading of rice, lifting for the purpose the quantitative
import restriction on rice," was signed into law by President Rodrigo Duterte. The
RTL focuses on having rice importers pay a tariff. Southeast Asian countries will pay a
35% tariff, while non-ASEAN members pay a 50% tariff or the tariff dictated by the
World Trade Organization.
These efforts that focus on rice importation aim to make rice more accessible to Filipinos,
as rice from countries like Vietnam and Thailand are sold at a more affordable price. But
what happens to Filipino rice farmers? Are there safety nets for our farmers?
ADVERTISEMENT - CONTINUE READING BELOW
A compelling argument why President Duterte should sign this bill into law is
that in doing so he kicks off the process of substantially reducing the
inefficiencies and collusion in the rice market system, which for nearly half a
century had made rice farmers poor. Farmers become better off as they
capture more of the intended trade protection of the law from rice traders in
collusion with corrupt NFA agents.
If farmers obtained 10% NPR in 2017, rice tarrification coupled with
investments in infrastructure under the government’s Build, Build, Build
program, could potentially raise NPR from 10% to 35%.
The tariff rate on imported rice could be lowered in the future without harming
the vast majority of farmers. The current proposed tariff level of 35% is a
maximum rate. If it is lowered, most of the rice farmers who are rice
consumers during most part of the year can be made better off, along with
non-rice farmers in rural areas, fisherfolk, workers and residents in urban
areas.
References
Jandoc, K. and Roummaset, J. 2018. Rice Tariffication and its Role in
Reducing Rice Prices. Unpublished paper.