A senator is seeking a Senate investigation into the alleged importation of millions of sacks of rice by Planters Products, Inc. (PPI), questioning how a sequestered corporation under the Department of Agriculture (DA) was able to bring in shipments reportedly worth nearly P2 billion.
Marcos filed Proposed Senate Resolution No. 392, calling for an inquiry into what she described as suspicious rice importation activities involving PPI.
According to Marcos, PPI had an estimated income of only around P90 million in 2024, raising doubts over its capacity to import rice on such a large scale.
“PPI’s estimated income in 2024 was only around P90 million. How was it able to import nearly P2 billion worth of rice?” Marcos said, alleging that the corporation may be “used and abused” to profit from importation.
Based on the resolution, PPI allegedly imported around 1.72 million sacks of rice in three batches, including 255,000 sacks from India in April 2025, 200,000 sacks in July 2025, and 1.27 million sacks from Vietnam, Thailand and Myanmar in January 2026.
Marcos also cited reports from the Federation of Free Farmers that another 1.54 million sacks of rice from India are currently en route to the country.
The senator warned that the influx of imported rice has worsened the situation of local farmers, with farmgate prices of palay reportedly falling to only P16 to P17 per kilo.
“Due to the greed of these officials, local palay prices have crashed, starving our 2.4 million farmers,” the lawmaker said.
The resolution seeks to determine whether PPI is being used as a “backdoor” channel for government rice importation, which Marcos said may run counter to the Rice Tariffication Law, or Republic Act No. 11203, which restricts government agencies such as the National Food Authority from direct rice importation.
She also raised concerns over the alleged absence of public bidding in the transactions, which could constitute a violation of the Government Procurement Reform Act, or Republic Act No. 9184.
“The mandate of the DA is to support local production, not to boost rice importation,” Marcos said, questioning whether PPI still serves public interest or the private gain of select officials.