The Philippine National Food Authority (NFA) Friday assured the public that there will be sufficient rice supply despite the massive devastation caused by the recent typhoon Fengshen in certain parts of the country.
The agency's stockpile of 920,000 metric tons of rice will meet the nationwide staple need for 28 days, said NFA spokesman Rex Estoperez, cited by Philippine TV network GMA News.
The country is expecting some rice buffer coming in July and August from neighboring countries, including Vietnam with another 600,000 metric tons, the spokesman said.
Estoperez also said that even Iloilo, a central province which was the hardest hit by Fengshen, is not expected to experience rice shortage, despite some NFA warehouses being flooded during the height of the typhoon.
Estoperez said the province has a stockpile of 30,000 to 40,000 metric tons of the staple.
The official estimated that 160,000 sacks of rice in the warehouses were swept away by floodwater.
Despite the damage brought by the typhoon, relief operations in the affected areas in the country have been continuous, he said.
Fengshen swept through the central Philippines last weekend, leaving at least 629 dead and 969 missing. The latest government data showed that the estimated cost of damage caused by the typhoon reached 6.8 billion pesos (153 million U.S. dollars), mostly to agriculture.
Source: Xinhua
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