PNG makes rice staple food without growing it

By Louisah Frank
Papua New Guineans have made rice a staple food at great cost without growing and producing their own, says Agriculture and Livestock Minister Benny Allan.
He told a media conference in Port Moresby on Tuesday that plans were underway to produce rice to cut the cost of importing annually.
Allan said the government was spending K600 million to import 400,000 tonnes of rice annually.
“A kg of rice costs about K6 on PNG shelves,” he said.
“That is because consumers are paying for other fees on top of the initial price of the rice, such as taxes to cover import costs.
“Stopping imports will cut price by 50 per cent – which is about K3.”
Allan said 10ha of land had been allocated and cleared at 14-Mile, outside Port Moresby, with the help of the Philippines government, to grow and produce rice.
“We want to stop rice imports, supply the country with local rice and begin rice exports to other countries by 2025,” he said.
“Coffee and chocolates are now being produced locally and I don’t see why we cannot do the same for rice. Trukai is already growing rice in the Markham Valley.”
Allan said PNG had resources and can do it with the help from the Philippines government.