MANILA — The Department of Agriculture (DA launched the expanded rollout of “Benteng Bigas, Meron Na!”—the flagship food program of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.—at select major fish ports in Luzon to benefit fisherfolk and registered fishery sector workers.

The program now covers the Navotas Fish Complex in Metro Manila, Sual Fish Port in Pangasinan, and the Lucena Fish Port Complex in Quezon. It provides fisherfolk and fishery workers listed under the Registry System for Basic Sectors of Agriculture (RSBSA) access to rice at a subsidized price of P20 per kilo, or half the prevailing market price for similar-quality rice.

Eligible beneficiaries may buy up to 10 kilos of rice per month by presenting their RSBSA or FishR IDs, or a valid QR code from the online registration system.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel Jr. said the expansion is in line with Marcos’ directive to reach 15 million households by 2026, with the program to continue until the end of his term in June 2028.

The DA’s information technology unit is finalizing a QR code system to track purchases under the P20 rice initiative. Tiu Laurel said the system will also provide data to determine consumption patterns and supply requirements.

Initially targeted at solo parents, senior citizens, 4Ps beneficiaries, and persons with disabilities, the rice subsidy program has since expanded to cover minimum wage earners, rice farmers, and now fisherfolk. Plans are also underway to include beneficiaries of the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s Walang Gutom program.

The program is led by the DA’s Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Service under Assistant Secretary Genevieve Velicaria-Guevarra and is implemented through the KADIWA ng Pangulo program. Rice stocks are sourced from the National Food Authority and distributed via Food Terminal Inc.

“Our goal is clear: provide affordable and quality food to those who feed the nation,” Tiu Laurel said. “By subsidizing their rice, we are trying to ease their daily burden while continuing to support programs that increase their incomes.”

Since its launch in May 2025, the P20 rice project has expanded to 212 sites nationwide, serving around 500,000 beneficiaries to date.