PH rice inventory continues to shrink, report shows

The country’s total rice reserve shrank for the second month in a row to settle at 69 days’ worth of consumption as of Feb. 1, nine days less than the buffer at the start of the year, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

Inventory fell to 2.35 million tons from 2.66 million tons on Jan. 1 as farmers prepare their fields for this year’s dry season crop.

Still, data from the PSA showed that the National Food Authority’s stock of milled rice climbed to 530,000 tons from 520,000 tons, although 97 percent of this was imported.

As of Feb. 1, the NFA’s stock was still at its mandated minimum volume, at 15 days’ consumption.

Supplies held in commercial warehouses went down by 40,000 tons to 770,000 tons. Likewise, household stocks dropped by 280,000 tons to settle at 1.05 million tons.

Households keep grains good for 31 days while commercial warehouses maintain supplies good for 24 days.

Two weeks ago, the NFA announced that it was preparing for the possible importation of 250,000 tons of well-milled rice from Thailand and Vietnam. The volume was valued at P9.5 billion.

Answering a call for tenders, Thailand’s Ministry of Commerce gave the best offer for 100,000 tons of well-milled, long-grain white rice with 15 percent brokens at $441 per ton.

Thailand’s offer was also the best for 100,000 tons with 25 percent brokens at $421 per ton.

Vietnam Southern Food Corp. matched Thailand’s prices for the remaining supplies of 150,000 tons for each lot.

The NFA has called for tenders in an effort to beef up its stock of the staple grain in time for the domestic lean production months that start in July.

In December, the Food and Agriculture Organization said the Philippines’ production of palay for the current crop year that would end in June 2015 was expected to ease by 0.4 percent to 18.8 million tons.

The FAO said this was due to farm damage caused by Typhoon “Ruby” as well as the farmers’ fears of the El Niño phenomenon.

However, in its latest market monitoring report issued on March 5, the Agriculture Market Information System (Amis) has stopped giving updates on the probability of a prolonged drought this year while maintaining its assessment that conditions on rice production were “favorable.”

In the previous report published in February, the Amis noted that the probability of the El Niño occurring had climbed back to 70 percent, but atmospheric signs had yet to materialize.

“[The criteria for an] El Niño, however, have not been met because these conditions have not been in place long enough, and certain atmospheric features have not yet appeared,” the Amis said. “A strong event is not expected, in any case.”