Food prices re-emerged as a key inflation driver in February, prompting the Department of Agriculture to step up measures aimed at shielding low-income households, as well as farmers and fisherfolk, from potential price shocks amid rising global uncertainty.
The DA said it has intensified monitoring of food prices and supply following fresh data indicating faster inflation among the country’s poorest families. The trend serves as an early signal that pressure on household budgets could build if global risks worsen.
Figures released Thursday by the Philippine Statistics Authority showed inflation for the poorest households rose to 2.5 percent in February 2026, up from 1.6 percent in January and 1.5 percent in the same month last year. The increase was driven largely by higher prices of heavily weighted food and non-alcoholic beverages.
Food inflation accelerated to 1.6 percent in February from 0.7 percent a month earlier, although it remained below the 2.6 percent recorded in February 2025.
Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel Jr. said authorities are closely watching markets as geopolitical tensions threaten to disrupt global commodity flows.
“We have intensified our price monitoring activities to ensure that supply and price of food remain stable even in the face of challenges,” he said.
The government is also preparing contingency measures. “We are now taking steps to secure supply so food and farm inputs are sufficient in anticipation of price shocks that may follow the current situation in the Middle East,” he added.
Rice played a key role in February’s inflation dynamics. Prices of the staple continued to decline year on year, but the pace of the drop slowed to 3.4 percent from the steeper 8.5 percent fall in January. This base effect contributed to the uptick in food inflation.
The deceleration comes more than a year after the agriculture department imposed a maximum suggested retail price on imported rice in late January 2025. The price was initially set at P58 per kilo and gradually reduced to P43 by July last year.
Beyond rice, the statistics agency reported faster price increases for several staples, including corn, flour, bread and other cereals, fish, seafood, vegetables, fruits, and milk.
Food inflation alone accounted for 0.6 percentage point of the country’s overall February inflation. This highlights the sector’s strong influence on consumer prices and the importance of keeping supply stable before global shocks reach Filipino dinner tables.
