Plans are underway to stabilize rice prices to prevent domestic rice shortages

According to the president of the Myanmar Rice Federation, Myanmar Rice Federation is making efforts to stabilize rice prices, prevent domestic rice shortages, and sell rice in the areas where rice is needed.
“Current priority is to stabilize rice prices for domestic consumption in order to ensure that there is no shortage of rice and transport, store and sell rice in the areas where rice is needed. We are coordinating with rice traders and private companies,” said MRF president U Ye Min Aung.
Regarding the increase in rice prices, he said the price of some types of rice went up during this period. The main reason for that is the difficulty in remittances from banks, which has led to a slight increase in commodity prices and transport disruptions.
Myanmar’s rice exports are currently declining, at about 40 per cent of average rice exports. They are expected to pick up again this summer, he added.
According to the rice federation, about 80 per cent of Myanmar’s rice is consumed domestically, and only 20 per cent is exported.
“Paddy prices are also declining. Rice mill owners and traders cannot afford to buy paddy as they have financial difficulties due to weak cash flow, leading to decreased price. We need cash flow to buy from the relevant traders and companies so that it does not fall below the base price set by the government,” he elaborated.
In Myanmar, monsoon paddy is planted in June, and the agricultural inputs needed for monsoon paddy cultivation need to be imported in a timely manner as in the current situation, it is necessary to take measures not to affect monsoon paddy cultivation as the price of agricultural inputs may increase, the MRF president stressed.
Fertilizers and agricultural inputs are imported domestically due to low domestic production. Importing should be done from now on since the monsoon paddy production is related to the country’s food security. He pointed out that the government and its associations should work together to make farming more manageable and regular during the monsoon season. —Lin Latt/GNLM