Pinoys spending P64 a day on meals are not 'food poor'—NEDA
Filipinos spending about P21.3 per meal are not considered "food poor," according to data from the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA).
The agency's secretary Arsenio Balisacan shared during the Development Budget Coordination Committee briefing that accounting for inflation, P64 a day for three meals is the threshold. The previous amount in 2021 was P55 per day.
"As of 2023, a monthly food threshold for a family of five is P9,581," Balisacan said.
Nancy Binay asked the NEDA secretary if P20 was sufficient, to which he answered, "the basket has not been changed for some time."
Balisacan also admitted that the number was outdated and came from more than a decade ago.
He added that it was the Department of Health and the Food and Nutrition Research Institute that recommended food items to add to the basket.
Furthermore, the NEDA chief noted that the price of rice exceeds the meal.
Based on monitoring of the Department of Agriculture, local regular milled rice is priced between P35 and P50 per kilo.
The National Nutrition Council said that P64 on daily meals is not enough to reach the recommended energy and nutrients.
"If we say P20 per meal, actually parang kulang pa nga 'yun. But it is just to fill your hunger, so possible it's more of the carbohydrates that you get. But you will not be able to get the recommended energy and nutrients intake natin," NCC Cordillera Administrative Region nutrition program coordinator Bella Basalong said in a media conference, as per GMA News.
"I think in terms of the food, okay naman 'yung ginamit nilang food basket," she said about the data. "Ang problema doon is hindi na-update 'yung prices, considering the inflation."