PH rice imports may hit 2.1M MT this year

THE Philippines’ rice imports could reach as much as 2.1 million metric tons (MT) this year, the biggest volume under the Aquino Administration and roughly the same level as in the 2008 global rice crisis, once the government approves the terms of a new trade concession with the World Trade Organization (WTO).

But Presidential Assistant on Food Security and Modernization (PAFSAM) Secretary Francis Pangilinan, who is also the chairman of the National Food Authority (NFA) Council, said that the government has yet to finalize the terms of the new trade concession.