Monty San Diego was shocked when Philippine government authorities urged restaurants and eateries in the country to cut to half-cup the regular serving of rice in their meals to help stave off a looming supply shortage.

The 23-year-old construction helper opened his packed lunch, which contained a small slice of dried fish, one whole tomato and a large heap of rice.

“Rice is the only thing that fills our stomach since we cannot afford slabs of meats or large slices of fish and other viands and they want us to cut our consumption of it too,” he said, shaking his head in disbelief. “What are we going to eat now?”

The father of two laughed off suggestions that fortified instant noodles being promoted by the government be substituted for rice, which is eaten during breakfast, lunch and dinner in the Philippines.

“It’s not the same,” he said. “Besides, I get stomach ache after eating three packs of these noodles.”

“These people are crazy,” said Maning Rosario, a rice farmer in the northern province of Nueva Ecija, when asked about the appeals of government officials for Filipinos to cut back on rice consumption.

Rosario said poor Filipinos have gotten used to eating rice without viands because of high prices of meats and fish, so asking them to cut back on their rice intake would be just too much.

Suggestions for Filipinos to turn to brown rice instead because it’s more nutritious and more filling are also raising eyebrows, since the less-popular variety is more expensive.

In The Philippines, a total of 2.3 million hectares of land are currently planted with rice, compared to 9.9 million hectares in Thailand and 7.5 million hectares in Vietnam, according to Department of Agriculture statistics.

As the government scrambles to source the country’s rice needs, the Department of Agriculture has vowed to step up its conservation program, which also includes efforts to stop hoarding by unscrupulous traders.

But its not only the price of rice that is soaring.

Bread, noodles and processed meat prices are also likely to rise in The Philippines officials said.

Trade Secretary Peter Favila told the Philippine Star newspaper that soft buns, which are the country’s most popular form of bread, “are getting smaller and probably the price of bread will increase.”

A request to buy low-cost milled wheat from China has been turned down, Favila said, forcing the government to turn to more expensive wheat from the U.S.

“I am saddened that China did not grant our request and I have already received official communication to that effect. They did not give any reason. They just said the demand in China is also large,” the secretary said.

Even noodles, which come from imported wheat will likely be affected as well, he warned.

“We have enough wheat but the thing is, raw materials are very expensive,” said Ric Pinca, executive director of the Philippine Association of Flour Millers.  He said that China was still the cheapest source of wheat even though supplies were available from the U.S., Australia and Canada.

Meanwhile, the Philippine Association of Meat Processors warned meat prices could go up due to a new government policy limiting the amount of raw materials they can import for their product.

In an open letter, the association warned that the new policy “will impact directly and immediately on the increase of food prices.”

The share of food on special import permits granted by the agriculture department has been reduced to 40 per cent, with livestock producers getting a larger 50 per cent share. The balance of 10 per cent is reserved for special government allocations.
–IANS