PILI, Camarines Sur -- The National Food Authority (NFA) has reduced to 10 percent this year from 19 percent last year its market intervention in rice trading in the province, according to the provincial manager here.

        NFA Manager Edmundo Enrique said the reduction in terms of NFA rice sold on subsidized price in the local market would be down to 536,000 bags in 2008 from the 951,000 bags in 2007.

        Enrique explained the measure of NFA market intervention is computed from the annual rice requirement of Camarines Sur that he said has reached 4.9 million bags for its 35 towns and two cities.

        He said the NFA’s thrust this year supports the government’s Food for School Program and additional target beneficiaries of the subsidized NFA rice who belong to the poorest of the poor.

        The reduction of market intervention also follows categories of provinces that are surplus, self-sufficient and deficit in rice production of which Masbate and Camarines Norte listed as the priority provinces in Bicol, Enrique added.

        He said the priority provinces are those with the highest incidence of poverty and malnutrition wherein the social services offices of local government units are required to identify beneficiaries of the NFA rice sold at P18.50 a kilo.

        “Consequently, we also have to reduce in Camarines Sur the number of authorized NFA rice retailers from 370 to 150 who will be assigned to sell NFA rice to the families the social services office identified,” Enrique said.

        He said the province of Camarines Sur is classified sufficient in rice in terms of local production so that part of the NFA rice allocation here would be distributed to deficit provinces.