THE average farmgate price of palay (unmilled rice) fell 31.8% year on year in June to an average of P16.99 per kilo, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said.
Month on month, the average palay farmgate price fell 4.3% compared to May, the PSA said in a report.
The June decline was steeper than the 28.9% year-on-year retreat recorded in May.
In June 2024, the farmgate price averaged P24.93 per kilo.
None of the 15 rice-producing regions posted year-on-year growth in average farmgate prices in June.
The highest palay prices were posted in the Bangsamoro region at P19.96, which was lower than the month-earlier P20.32 and the year-earlier P26.66.
The lowest palay prices were logged in Calabarzon at P12.52, with the farmgate price in the region falling 44.5% year on year and 10.7% month on month.
In Central Luzon, the average farmgate price was P14.51, down from P25.17 a year earlier and P17.90 a month earlier.
The Department of Agriculture said in May that it is considering a floor price for palay, after identifying 32 areas in Luzon where traders buy palay at P13-P15 per kilo. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza