Filipino subsidy to impact 2m farmers

According to local media reports, Philippines Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) will start providing rice subsidies to about two million farmers, fisherfolk, and the poorest of the poor next week to cushion the impact of rising food prices. Social Welfare Secretary Corazon Soliman said the government would start distributing rice subsidies to poor families on May 15. To ensure that only qualified families would avail of the cheap NFA rice, the official said beneficiaries would get vouchers from the local government, which they will use to withdraw rice. - Oryza