By Benjamin Cuaresma
MANILA — Imee Marcos has called for a Senate investigation into what she described as “suspicious” rice importations conducted by Planters Products Inc. (PPI), a sequestered firm currently under the supervision of the Department of Agriculture.
Through Senate Resolution No. 392, Marcos is seeking to determine whether PPI is allegedly being used as a “backdoor” for government rice importation despite restrictions under the Rice Tariffication Law.
Marcos stressed that the DA’s primary responsibility should be strengthening local agricultural production instead of facilitating rice importation.
She questioned how PPI, which reportedly earned only around P90 million in 2024, was able to finance nearly P2 billion worth of imported rice.
“Is PPI still for the people or already for the wallets of a few?” Marcos asked, raising suspicions that the corporation may be benefiting from large-scale importation activities.
According to the senator, PPI allegedly imported more than 1.723 million sacks of rice through three separate shipments.
The reported imports included:
- 255,000 sacks from India in April 2025
- 200,000 sacks from India in July 2025
- More than 1.268 million sacks from Vietnam, Thailand, and Myanmar in January 2026
The Federation of Free Farmers also reportedly disclosed that another 1.545 million sacks from India are currently on the way.
Marcos warned that the continued influx of imported rice has severely affected local farmers, particularly rice growers struggling with declining farmgate prices.
She said palay prices have reportedly dropped to only P16 to P17 per kilo, worsening the situation of an estimated 2.4 million Filipino farmers.
The senator blamed what she described as the “greed” of certain officials for the collapse in local palay prices, saying excessive importation is undermining domestic agriculture instead of protecting it.
ia/xf
