PHP 20 rice now available in Passi City — here’s how

By Mariela Angella Oladive

At least 1,000 residents of Passi City availed of rice priced at PHP 20 per kilogram during the rollout of the Department of Agriculture’s Benteng Bigas, Meron Na! program in the city on Monday, March 16.

The beneficiaries included senior citizens, persons with disabilities, solo parents, Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program beneficiaries, farmers, fisherfolk, transport group members, and families from the lower middle-income sector.

To access the subsidized rice, beneficiaries were registered through the P20 Benteng Bigas Masterlist Registry System, a web-based platform developed by the DA’s Information and Communications Technology Service to register and monitor recipients.

The rollout was led by DA Assistant Secretary Atty. Genevieve Velicaria-Guevarra and attended by Passi City Mayor Stephen A. Palmares, Vice Gov. Nathalie Ann “Lee Ann” Debuque, Iloilo 4th District board members Rolly Distura and Dominic Oso, DA-6 Regional Executive Director Dennis Arpia, National Food Authority Region 6 Regional Manager Rodolfo Corpuz, acting Provincial Agriculture Office head Felina Grace Basco, and representatives from Food Terminal Inc.

Rice is the primary staple food in the Philippines, with the average Filipino household spending a significant portion of its food budget on the commodity. Rice prices have been a persistent concern for low-income families, prompting the national government to implement various subsidy and price stabilization programs.

The Benteng Bigas, Meron Na! initiative is part of the national government’s effort to make rice more affordable for poor and vulnerable sectors and help ease the impact of rising food costs.

In a statement, the Passi City government said the program would provide much-needed support to residents facing daily financial pressures.

Mayor Palmares thanked the DA, the NFA, and other partner agencies for including Passi City among the areas where the program was rolled out.

The rollout also supports a broader provincial initiative launched last year by the Iloilo Provincial Government led by Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr.

The provincial government signed a memorandum of agreement with 43 local government units under Executive Order No. 040, series of 2025, as part of the “SiPag at TiyaGa for MoRProGRes sa Bagong Pilipinas” program promoting food and health security.

Under the agreement, the province allocated PHP 26.5 million to purchase 20,000 bags of rice from Food Terminal Inc. for distribution to 42 municipalities and Passi City, with local governments handling the sale, storage, and distribution to identified beneficiaries.