How much should a kilo of pork sell these days? DA issues new price points
The Department of Agriculture (DA) has released a new suggested retail price (SRP) guideline for prime agri-fishery commodities to guide market retailers and protect consumers from any price irregularities.
The new price structure now covers 11 items, from just nine in March when the government began imposing quarantine measures across the country to try to halt the spread of COVID-19.
Agriculture Secretary William Dar said in a phone interview the changes were made “as more commodities are becoming more important” as reflected by the agency’s daily price monitoring reports.
Dar said the following price points were agreed upon by regional directors and were based on prevailing rates of public markets in Metro Manila. A different SRP scheme would be implemented in the provinces as well.
Under the new SRP scheme, prices of pork pigue and pork liempo increased to P230 a kilo and P250 a kilo from P190 a kilo and P225 a kilo in March, respectively.
A medium chicken leg should sell at around P6.50 per piece while a medium chicken egg is at P6.50 and whole chicken at P130 a kilo.
Price points for rice variants remained segmented. For imported rice, prices vary for special (P52), premium (P42) and well-milled (P38). For local rice, prices were set at P53 a kilo for special, P45 for premium and P40 for well-milled.
For fish variants, a kilo of “bangus” was pegged at P169 a kilo, tilapia at P120 a kilo, and P140 and P180 a kilo for local and imported “galunggong,” respectively—all registering increases from price points months ago.
Imported onion and garlic were priced at P100 a kilo, while brown sugar and refined sugar must be sold within the range of P45 to P50 a kilo. Cooking oil was pegged at P50 per liter.
Violation of the SRP guidelines carries a fine of P5,000 to P1 million and a jail term of one to 10 years or both.
