August 26, 2025 | 12:00am
MANILA, Philippines — The Division of Agriculture (DA) will soft-launch its Command Middle in November, a digital hub designed to centralize knowledge and strengthen administration of the nation’s meals provide.
Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. stated the system will initially deal with the rice worth chain, describing the staple as each “important” and “difficult” to handle.
The Command Middle will consolidate knowledge on manufacturing, imports, inventory ranges, classifications, wholesale and retail costs, consumption charges, infrastructure, irrigation protection, spoilage and international market traits.
“The DA already has most of this knowledge, however they’re scattered throughout numerous businesses. We should carry them collectively and make market sense of them, plus collect further knowledge that we lack, so we will use our restricted assets extra effectively and productively,” Laurel stated.
Commerce knowledge for the power will primarily come from the Bureau of Plant Trade’s Osiris system.
The DA famous that rice imports in April and Might reached 970,000 metric tons, far above the nation’s month-to-month common consumption of 320,000 MT.
The glut pushed down farmgate palay costs and prompted President Marcos to droop rice importation for 2 months starting Sept. 1.
In keeping with the company, sharper supply-and-demand forecasting by way of the Command Middle, mixed with the proposed restoration of regulatory powers to the DA and the Nationwide Meals Authority beneath amendments to the Rice Tariffication Regulation, will assist curb worth shocks and stabilize farmers’ incomes.
The DA stated the mannequin will ultimately be expanded to cowl different sectors, together with high-value crops, livestock, poultry and fisheries.
It is going to additionally oversee the registration of meals amenities and warehouses nationwide, which the company considers very important to modernizing agriculture and securing the nation’s meals provide.