Agriculture Secretary William Dar (File photo)

The Department of Agriculture (DA) gave its assurance that there will be enough and steady food supply when Metro Manila goes under the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) community quarantine starting Monday.

Agriculture Secretary William Dar said sufficient food will be available in public markets and “KADIWA ni Ani Kita” and “FishDA on the GO” outlets.

“For our basic staple, rice, the current inventory at various NFA warehouses nationwide is good for at least 80 days, and it will be further augmented by the incoming palay harvest this current dry season, providing additional stocks for another two to three months,” he said.

The agriculture chief added that rice supply is good for at least nine months based on initial commitments from the private sector and the DA regional offices under the Food Resiliency Action Plan.

Dar bared that his department will promptly design an action plan on food supply as a precautionary measure should the health situation deteriorate.

He mentioned that DA will look at various scenarios, including the strategic positioning of food supplies so as not to interrupt food sufficiency in Metro Manila.

Other items on the DA’s watch-list aside from rice, are vegetables, fruits, eggs, fish, pork and other items. (Jojo Mangahis)