NFA’s Rice Buffer Stock Reaches Highest Level Since 2020

The National Food Authority (NFA) announced on Tuesday that its rice buffer stock has reached its highest level in five years, totaling approximately 7.17 million 50-kilogram bags of milled rice.

This milestone is the largest inventory since the end of 2020 and was achieved thanks to increased palay procurement prices—averaging ₱27 per kilo in 2024 and ₱24 per kilo this year.

Despite the substantial stockpile, NFA Administrator Larry Lacson assured that the agency still has enough budget to buy more palay, with the capacity to purchase around 500,000 metric tons, equivalent to about 6.3 million bags of milled rice.

Lacson reported that only ₱2.6 billion of the ₱14.6 billion allocated for palay procurement in 2025 has been used so far, with ₱5.6 billion carried over from last year’s budget.

Under the amended Rice Tariffication Law (RTL), the NFA must now maintain a 15-day national rice buffer stock—an increase from the previous nine-day mandate. These stocks must be sourced from local farmers to support domestic agriculture.

The NFA is also expanding its storage infrastructure to handle up to 555,000 metric tons of milled rice or 880,000 metric tons of palay.

Since the RTL was enacted in 2019, the NFA has shifted away from importing and directly selling rice to the public. It can now only distribute “aging stocks,” or rice stored for at least two months after milling.

As of April 11, the NFA’s inventory includes 1.1 million bags of milled rice, composed of both fresh and aging stock.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. emphasized that the robust buffer stock allows the government to offer support to disadvantaged communities, potentially at prices even lower than the current ₱29-per-kilo subsidized rice.