The National Food Authority procured one million bags of palay in Western Visayas in 2008 as part of its aggressive palay buying program.  

Region 6 is among the regions with the most palay procured last year, NFA figures show.

Others are Southern Tagalog, three million bags; Central Luzon, 2.1 million; Ilocos Region, 1.7 million; Cagayan Valley, 1.4 million; Bicol Region, 1.3 million; and Central Mindanao, also one million.

In 2008, the NFA allocated P17 billion for the procurement of around 20 million bags from the past year’s produce. It has so far bought some 13.2 million bags, the second highest procurement volume in the last 29 years.

The buying price was increased to P17 per kilo from the P11.50, starting April 2008 for clean and dry palay with 14 percent moisture content and a minimum of 95 percent purity

Farmers also received an additional fertilizer incentive of P1,800 per 50 bags of 50 kilogram palay sold.

The latest NFA report stated that  regional and provincial offices continue to receive their procurement budgets and mobile procurement teams have also been set up to augment the stationary buying stations in the NFA warehouses.

The number of buying stations has been increased to 379 units in 2008, including those in far-flung municipalities and cities, it added.*NLG

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