HOUSE Ways and Means Chair Joey Sarte Salceda (Albay, 2nd district) released a statement addressing the December 2023 inflation report, highlighting positive developments in rice prices while calling attention to persistent issues in corn and meat inflation.
“The rice price situation is showing signs of improvement. Month-on-month, prices declined by 0.7 percent—a modest but meaningful reduction. More importantly, year-on-year rice prices increased by only 0.9 percent, significantly lower than the overall inflation rate of 2.9 percent. This indicates that rice is no longer driving consumer prices upward,” Salceda noted.
He attributed this improvement to measures taken by the Speaker in response to the Murang Pagkain Supercommittee’s initiatives. “By December, the Speaker compelled major rice industry players in Central Luzon to lower rice prices. We anticipate further reductions in January and February,” he added.
However, Salceda expressed concern over corn prices, which he has repeatedly flagged in recent months. “Corn inflation is at 5.0 percent year-on-year, which has, in turn, driven meat inflation to 4.9 percent, given its role as a key input in livestock feed.”
To address this, Salceda announced that the Murang Pagkain Supercommittee would prioritize discussions on corn and meat inflation during its next session, likely convening next week. “We will also urge the Department of Agriculture to continue advancing its proposed rice price emergency to sustain and deepen the gains we’ve made,” he concluded.