Manila, May 2 -- The Department of Agriculture (DA) on Thursday assured of a stable supply of rice for the entire year despite the slight decline in production during the first three months of 2024 due to the El Nino phenomenon.

Agriculture Assistant Secretary Arnel de Mesa made the assurance after the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported that rice production from January to March this year dropped to 4.68 million metric tons (MMT), compared to 4.78 MMT for the same period last year.

"Bumababa siya ng bahagyang-bahagya (It slightly decreased) by almost 100,000 metric tons. Mayroon pa naman tayong upcoming na wet season, mas malaki ang production na nangyayari (We still have the upcoming wet season, there's a higher production ...