Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel Jr. told lawmakers that the Department of Agriculture (DA) is recommending a phased approach to raising the rice import tariff, to avoid disrupting both local and global markets.
Speaking before the House of Representatives’ Murang Pagkain Super Committee on Wednesday, Tiu Laurel said the DA has formally proposed to the Tariff Commission a gradual increase back to the original 35 percent rate. He warned that a sudden jump from the current 15 percent could rattle market stability and reverse efforts to keep prices affordable. “A 20-percentage-point jump would rattle the market and set back our price stabilization efforts,” he said.
The tariff was temporarily cut by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in July 2024 in response to food inflation driven by El Niño and India’s export ban. The reduction to 15 percent prompted the DA to impose a maximum suggested retail price (MSRP) on imported rice, which helped curb rising costs.
To soften the impact of restoring the tariff, Tiu Laurel said the increase should be timed with harvest periods in major exporting countries such as Vietnam and Pakistan—around late September and December, respectively. Vietnam remains the Philippines’ top rice supplier, but the DA is also looking to expand sourcing from India and Pakistan to ensure steady supply and pricing.
Despite rising global prices, the DA plans to reduce the MSRP of imported rice by P2 per kilo to P43 starting July 1. Since January, the MSRP has already dropped from P58 due to global trends and the lower tariff. The tariff proposal coincides with renewed scrutiny of the Rice Tariffication Law, which was amended in 2024. Under the revised law, the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF) will increase its annual allocation from P10 billion to P30 billion.
