The Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) expressed strong support for the struggle of farmers in Guimba, Nueva Ecija to raise the farmgate price of palay to fair levels.

“The national and local government must listen to the farmers’ call. The Rice Liberalization Law or RA 11203 and the drop in palay farmgate prices are a double burden. Setting Php20 as the floor price for fresh palay is only just to secure farmers’ livelihood,” KMP chairperson Danilo Ramos said.

In June, 199 palay farmers from Barangay Bantud, San Roque, and other barangays in Guimba, Nueva Ecija signed a petition calling for the immediate implementation of a Php20 per kilo farmgate price for fresh palay. Farmers raised concerns over the drop in palay prices to Php10 to Php12 per kilo, with even lower prices in other barangays.

Nueva Ecija, particularly the town of Guimba, serves as the country’s top rice-producing area. In the first quarter of 2023, the province recorded a production of 345,547 metric tons (MT) of palay, accounting for 39.8% of the total production in Central Luzon, which supplies 18.1% of the national yield.

According to the KMP, RA 11203 devastated palay farmers by allowing unregulated rice importation. This flooded the market with imported rice, dropping local palay farmgate prices.

“Farmers are burdened by the continued implementation of RA 11203 as well as its amendment RA 12078. These measures have sunk palay farmers deeper into debt and loss of income,” Ramos emphasized. “Only traders and importers benefited. This law should have long been repealed.”

The farmers’ petition in Guimba highlights the national rice crisis affecting millions of palay farmers. Alongside imposing a Php20 per kilo floor price, the NFA’s mandate to buy directly from farmers should be restored, and support should be given for processing palay, including drying, storage, and market delivery, the group explained.

“The fight to increase the farmgate price of palay is the fight of all Filipino farmers. The public must support this and the government must act,” Ramos appealed.