Department of Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. announced on Wednesday the implementation of the ₱20-per-kilo rice program, which will first be rolled out in the Visayas region.

Tiu Laurel made the announcement following a closed-door meeting between President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and 12 governors from the Visayas, held at the Cebu Provincial Capitol. According to the DA Secretary, President Marcos wants the sale of ₱20-per-kilo rice to be implemented nationwide by 2028.

“The President has actually given the directive. Initially, this DA program was supposed to last until December—it could be extended until February. But our President has instructed the Department of Agriculture to make this sustainable and continue it until 2028,” Laurel said in a press conference.

Under the program, each family will be allowed to purchase 10 kilos of rice per week, or 40 kilos per month, at the price of ₱20 per kilo.

The ₱20-per-kilo rice was a campaign promise of President Marcos during the 2022 presidential elections. Now that international market prices have gone down, the DA has decided it is time to implement the program.

“Ever since I came into office, that was the basic question: Can we provide ₱20 rice to the masses? At that time, I always answered that it was an aspiration of this administration. So it was always on our mind, and the DA team has been working day and night to make this a reality,” said Tiu Laurel.

“Now that world market prices have dropped, the subsidy is easier to manage,” he added.

Laurel also mentioned that the National Food Authority (NFA) has enough rice stocks in its warehouses in the Visayas, particularly in Iloilo. Currently, he said, the NFA has a buffer stock of 358,000 metric tons (MT) of rice, which is enough to last nine days in case of an emergency.

Vice President Sara Duterte Reacts: Questions Quality, Timing of Rollout

Meanwhile, Vice President Sara Duterte reacted to the announcement, voicing concerns about both the quality of the rice and the political timing of the rollout.

“I have my doubts that they will sell rice at ₱20 per kilo — but not for human consumption. It’s for animals,” the Vice President told reporters during an interview in La Castellana, Negros Occidental, also on Wednesday.

“What do they call it — like lamaw? (What you feed to pigs.) Yes. Like that. Is that what NFA rice is, sir? That’s what I mean — if we’re saying ₱20-per-kilo rice, it should be rice fit for people,” she added.

“That’s the ₱20-per-kilo rice they’re selling — the kind fed to pigs. Filipinos are not pigs, not animals. If you’re going to sell rice at ₱20 per kilo, we’ll all buy it — as long as it’s fit for human consumption.”

Duterte also questioned the timing of the pilot implementation, with the midterm elections scheduled for May 12.

“That’s another promise to the people that’s clearly meant for the elections — for the benefit of their supposed alliance’s Senate candidates, even though two of them already left because, as far as I know, that alliance has no real direction,” she said.

She further questioned why the program was being launched only in the Visayas:

“They’re fooling people again with this ₱20-per-kilo rice. And you have to wonder — why only in the Visayas? Aren’t the people in Mindanao hungry too? Aren’t the people in Luzon also hungry? Why only offer ₱20 rice in the Visayas?”