DA renews call for bill urging food establishments to serve half-cup rice
The Department of Agriculture (DA) is seeking to revive a bill proposing to serve half a cup of rice in establishments to curb heavy rice wastage in the country.
The measure would urge restaurants, canteens, eateries, and hotels to offer half-cup rice servings.
“At present, it is better if it will become an option, but of course, we defer to the legislators what could be the best scenario for this bill,” De Mesa said, noting that the same bill was also proposed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. when he was a senator in 2013, as per The Philippine STAR report.
De Mesa noted that half-cup rice will only be an option for customers.
“If you serve one cup of rice and there will be leftovers, that is automatic wastage, not unlike if there is an opportunity to offer a half-cup of rice,” he explained.
According to data from the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), about 255,000 metric tons of rice was wasted in 2019. The Department of Science and Technology-Food and Nutrition Research Institute found that daily rice wastage per household averaged 53kg of uncooked rice from 2018 to 2019. The figure has reduced since 2009, which recorded 340,000 metric tons of rice wasted.
This isn't the first time the DA has called to revive the half-cup rice bill as it called for the measure in 2023.
Philrice Deputy Executive Director Karen Barroga also urged businesses, especially those that have “unli rice” promos, to impose penalties on customers leaving excess rice.
For their part, restaurant owners said that while they support the bill, the government must set a standard measure of half-cup rice.
“Sana may guidelines ang government as to what constitute a serving for an adult for rice. Ito ba ay 150 grams, 100? Dahil kung sasabihing half rice, magulo pa rin,” Resto PH president Eric Teng said in a TeleRadyo Serbisyo interview.
“Pwede kaming mag-recommend for child’s portion or kiddie portion. Ide-determine in terms of grammage,” he added.
The agency said that the measure would not only address food wastage but promote "healthier, more balanced diets."
"This isn't just about food security—it's about sustainability and public health,' Tiu Laurel said.
