Fair Prices for Basic Staple Food: Rice

It’s that time of year again when we’re gearing up for the monsoon crops and prepping to plant cold-season crops for the second cycle. The paddy, our primary monsoon crop, has already been harvested and turned into rice for the local market. At the same time, our cold-season crops are thriving on the right farms.

Myanmar is a big player in the rice production game. To keep our farmers thriving financially, we need to amp up our rice production while keeping production costs low and ensuring fair market prices. It’s a team effort to support our farmers and maintain a balanced market for consumers to enjoy a solid socio-economic life.

Every year, we cultivate paddy on around 17 million acres. 80% of our rice yield is used locally for consumption and food production, while the remaining 20% is exported. It takes a village to keep our rice market stable, and that means everyone needs to step up domestically to make sure everything runs smoothly.

The hike in rice prices comes from a mix of factors like unpredictable weather during harvest, pricey inputs like pesticides and fertilizers, more expensive labor in agriculture, and unrest in rice-growing regions. One big player in this price game is market manipulation, where rice is bought and hoarded in bulk to jack up the prices. To keep rice affordable for all, it’s important that prices consider both farmers’ production costs and fair profits for everyone involved in the rice journey, from milling to sales.

To back our farmers, who are the lifeblood of our rice sector, the Steering Committee on Protection of Farmer Rights and Enhancement of Benefits set a basic reference price for paddy on October 19, 2024. This move follows previous price tweaks in response to changing times. Organizations that matter put our farmers’ well-being first and are hustling to stabilize rice prices to create a fair and unshakable market atmosphere.

Now, let’s talk specifics. Paddy with just the right moisture content, zero husk, chaff, dust, sand, or stones, meeting all quality standards, is valued at K9.5 million per 100 baskets, with each basket weighing in at 46 pounds. If the market price goes above the base price, deals should roll at market rate. But if the market price drops below the base price, snag deals at the base price. This base price rule applies to 2024 monsoon paddy and 2025 summer paddy harvests.

Our paddy and rice prices are all about real-time commodity rates. The only time domestic commodity prices dip is when farmers scale back for a slimmer profit cut on their crops. Lower prices spell good news for us consumers, helping ease those socio-economic pressures we all feel.