The Philippines wastes an estimated 10.85 million sacks of rice every year, equivalent to about ₱24.4 billion, according to the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice).

The Department of Agriculture (DA) said the amount of wasted rice could have fed around 5.17 million Filipinos for an entire year, highlighting the impact of food waste on the country’s food supply and food security.

PhilRice estimates that every Filipino throws away an average of about two tablespoons of cooked rice each day. When accumulated nationwide, the wastage is equivalent to millions of sacks annually.

To address the problem, the DA and PhilRice are strengthening the Be RICEponsible campaign, which encourages Filipinos to avoid wasting rice, support locally produced rice and make healthier choices when consuming the country’s staple food.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. stressed that reducing rice waste can also help strengthen the livelihoods of Filipino farmers and contribute to national food security.

The campaign, which traces its roots to the 2013 National Year of Rice and was launched as Be RICEponsible in 2014, is now being promoted as a year-round advocacy rather than an initiative observed mainly during National Rice Awareness Month.

PhilRice has also encouraged households to adopt simple measures such as cooking only enough rice for each meal and finding ways to use leftovers instead of throwing them away.

Recent data cited by PhilRice showed Filipinos waste about 9.69 kilograms of cooked rice per person annually, equivalent to about 542,477 metric tons of milled rice nationwide.

The DA said reducing waste is especially important because producing more rice and minimizing post-harvest losses alone will not fully strengthen the country's rice supply if significant amounts of cooked rice continue to end up in the trash.

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