By: Keith Clores

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Agriculture (DA) launched its P20 per kilo rice program in four more locations across the country on Wednesday.

The subsidized rice sale will now be available in Laoag City, Ilocos Norte; Roxas City, Capiz; Baloy, Cagayan de Oro City, Misamis Oriental and San Jose, Occidental Mindoro, according to Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr.

“Eligible individuals to the program may purchase up to 10 kilos of subsidized rice per month,” the DA said.

The DA announced that over 2.8 million registered fisherfolk will benefit from the program starting August 29.

As of August 20, the beneficiaries include farm workers listed in the Registry System for Basic Sectors in Agriculture, solo parents, senior citizens, persons with disabilities, Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program and the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s Walang Gutom (No Hunger) Program beneficiaries, minimum wage earners, and other low-income groups.

Continuous criticism

The DA’s P20 per kilo rice program has consistently faced criticism from both experts and beneficiaries alike. 

In late July, University of the Philippines scientist Teodoro Mendoza noted that cheaper rice forces farmers to sell palay (unmilled rice) for only P8 to P12.

On Tuesday, fisherfolk group Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya) called the program an inadequate solution to “address the root of the production crisis, which is also behind the high price of rice in the market.”

Tiu Laurel previously responded to the criticisms.

“No one is being forced to avail of it. We’re simply trying to make life a little less difficult for the people who feed this country. This is one step, just one, toward greater food security,” he said.

The P20 per kilo rice program began in May in the Visayas.

It was suspended from May 2 to May 12, in accordance with the spending ban imposed for the midterm elections.

The DA is aiming to cover up to 15 million households by 2026.

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. approved an additional P10 billion in the DA’s funding for 2026. Marcos previously ordered the DA to sustain the program until the end of his term in June 2028.

Published Date: August 20, 2025