Kadiwa ng Pangulo to distribute Piña rice nationwide

MANILA, Philippines: The Kadiwa ng Pangulo will start distributing nationwide thousands of bags of Piña rice brand following the arrival of 192,000 25-kilo bags on board the vessel M/V Seagull 09.

Jomerito “Jojo” Soliman, chief executive officer and general manager of Sta. Rosa Farm and PureRice Milling and Processing Corporation, said in a statement that two vessels loaded with the Piña rice have been declared at the Bureau of Customs (BoC) for the payment of duties of about P96 million.

Piña rice sold at P39 per kilo during the Kadiwa ng Pangulo caravan at Quezon City hall recently. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

The imported rice was inspected by the Department of Agriculture and security officials.

Soliman lauded the concerned agencies involved in the processing of the rice importation.

“I really appreciate how efficient personnel from the BoC, DA, the PNP and the National Security office are in doing their job,” he said.

“I can see that they are following the directives of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to streamline procedures and requirements in the licensing of importers thereby minimizing the time spent on application for importation,” he added.

The Piña rice brand was the main reason why grain prices stabilized at P47 per kilo.

Piña rice sold at P39 per kilo during the Kadiwa ng Pangulo caravan at Quezon City hall recently. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

Soliman recalled that the selling price of rice used to range from P55 to P65 per kilo.

The Kadiwa ng Pangulo together with the DA, Department of Social Welfare and Development and Department of the Interior and Local Government provided this rice brand for communities.

“We are hoping that from these new shipments, more cities and provinces will be reached by the Kadiwa ng Pangulo project so that more Filipinos can buy rice at a much lower price,” Soliman said.