Emergency rice ready for Typhoon Ruby aftermath

MANILA, Philippines – The National Food Authority (NFA) has positioned 50,000 bags of 50-kilogram (kg) rice for emergency use for Typhoon Ruby (international name: Hagupit), said food security chief Francis Pangilinan on Friday, December 5.

Prior to Ruby’s landfall, the country’s rice buffer stock remains sufficient for 17 days, Pangilinan said.

Some 44,000, 50-kilogram bags of NFA rice is now on standby for allocation to Region VIII or Eastern Visayas, where Typhoon Ruby is expected to make landfall either on Saturday night or Sunday morning,

The provision would be released in Northern Samar.

The NFA office in Sorsogon also allocated 5,000 bags of 50-kg rice for transfer to Northern Samar once the roll-on, roll-off (RORO) vessel operations in the area resume.

Another allocation of 5,000 bags is on standby should the initial volume not suffice.

NFA regional offices in other provinces that will be affected by Typhoon Ruby have issued allocations to local government units, offices of the Department of Social Welfare and Development, and the Philippine Red Cross, Pangilinan said.

“Rolling stores are ready to be deployed post calamity, if needed,” Pangilinan said.

The NFA is mandated to secure the availability of staple grains in the event of natural or man-made calamities.

It should also be ready to position staple requirements within 48 hours of the occurrence of an emergency.

NFA is also mandated to restore or maintain within two weeks of occurrence of a disaster the prices of staple grains at levels prior to the occurrence of a calamity.

On Thursday, December 4, the Department of Agriculture called on farmers in areas to be affected by Ruby to harvest their maturing crops prior to the typhoon’s landfall.

At risk of destruction are 691,692 hectares of rice lands and 303,542 hectares dedicated to corn already in the maturity stage, Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said in a statement. – Rappler.com