PH plans exportation of high-quality rice

The Philippines, which is known as the world’s top rice importer, plans to pursue more aggressively its goal of going into rice exportation.

From the 10 metric tons to be shipped out of the country in the first quarter this year, the Department of Agriculture aims to increase the volume of the country’s rice exports to 300,000 metric tons within three years.

Dante Delima, assistant secretary of the Department of Agriculture and National Rice Program coordinator, said this at the sidelines of the launch of the National Year of Rice in Quezon City on Monday.

Delima said the government was targeting to gradually raise the country’s rice exports to 300, 000 MT by 2016.

“We are planning to export the same volume of rice imports that will enter the country through the WTO agreement, so rice prices will not be affected,” Delima said.

Delima was referring to the country’s commitment to allow at least 350,000 MT of rice to enter the country at 50 percent tariff under a World Trade Organization agreement.

In the meantime, he said the country would ship 10 metric tons of high quality varieties of rice including black, red and organic fancy rice to Hong Kong and Macau by the first quarter of this year.