BUTUAN CITY, (PNA) — Butuan City Mayor Ferdinand M. Amante, Jr. during a meeting of the Local Price Monitoring and Coordinating Council on Tuesday formed a fact finding team to look into the rising price of rice in the local markets.
Amante said that three weeks ago, he inquired from the National Food Authority (NFA) office here regarding the noted increase of the price of rice in the local markets here. He assured that there was no noted hoarding of rice here in the city.
The reason given by the NFA, according to the mayor was that the rising price of the commodity was seasonal since it is now between the planting and harvest season.
The lower price of rice, he was told, will again be experienced during the start of the harvest season. He was assured however, that the rice supply in the city and even in the region is sufficient.
Howbeit, the mayor said that he is forming the task force which will also act as a fact-finding body, in order to determine if there was no actual hoarding of rice here, as the price of rice has been up for sometime now.
The fact-finding body will also help the LPMCC conduct an inventory on the rice millers and traders here. The body will start their assigned task on Wednesday and Thursday and then submit the report of their findings to the mayor as LPMCC chair.
The composition of the task force were representatives from the: National Food Authority, Department of Justice, City Agriculture Office, Butuanong Kunsumador (an organization of city consumers) and the Farmers Group.
The price of rice here in the city has gone up to almost P50.00 per kilo.