Philippines rice self-sufficiency improved to 85% in 2020

A worker puts harvested rice into a sack at a warehouse in San Antonio district, Quezon province, the Philippines. - Bloomberg

MANILA (Philippine Daily Inquirer/Asia News Network): Local production of rice last year met 85 per cent of the country’s total requirement, up from the 79.8 per cent self-sufficiency level in 2019 which was the lowest in eight years.

That was the first time the country was able to register an increase in its rice self-sufficiency level after three consecutive years of decline.