ZAMBOANGA CITY – Newly installed National Food Authority (NFA) manager for this city has assured the people here of steady and available supply of government rice for the poor people amidst talks of rice shortage that could hit the city during the Yuletide season.

Gaudencio “Boy” Nuega, the newly installed NFA manager for this city, said the NFA office here has sufficient supply of government rice for the people that could last even until early next year.

He dispelled rumors that the food agency here might run short of rice supply particularly during the Yuletide season considering that many people will be going to this city to spend the Christmas holiday.

He said their rice procurement centers in the region continued to buy palay and they have enough palay inventory at the centers now ready for milling.

At present, he said “our mandate is only to provide 20 percent of the total rice consumption of the city which is pegged at 6,000 sacks a day.”

Of the total, NFA is mandated only to infuse about 1,200 to 1,500 bags of NFA rice in the market daily to keep the price of commercial rice low.

At the same time, the poor people of the city can also avail of the government rice which is sold at P25 per kilo, he said.

“What is important here is that our city has sufficient supply of rice during the Christmas season even with the expected influx of people to the city for the coming holidays.