LEGAZPI CITY – The National Food Authority (NFA) in Bicol assured that it has a sufficient supply of rice largely due to a good harvest during the second quarter of this year.
Henry Tristeza, NFA regional director, in an interview on Friday, said there are currently 36,000 bags of rice and another 378,000 bags of palay (unhusked rice) in various warehouses across Bicol.
He said the 378,000 bags would serve as an additional buffer stock to maintain the 15-day supply requirements under the agency's guidelines.
“(With) the easing of the community quarantine status from general community quarantine (GCQ) to modified general community quarantine (MGCQ) in Bicol, we could now go on full blast in the milling of our palay reserves,” he said.
Tristeza added that the good harvest during the first half of the year has ensured the region's rice sufficiency. Aside from palay bought by the agency, private rice traders were able to buy the bulk of the palay harvested by farmers. (PNA)