Info on plasticizer found in rice came from DOH

In the Inquirer’s July 6 editorial (“Fake rice?”), Food Security and Agricultural Modernization Secretary Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan was quoted as saying he had been “informed that, for harmful effects to be felt, one has to be ingesting DBP [dibutyl phthalate] every day for at least three months.”

We would like to clarify that during the press briefing held at the Food Development Center at FTI, Taguig, last July 3, the secretary did mention that the information received was relayed to him by Undersecretary Kenneth Hartigan-Go, a physician and toxicologist, former executive director of the Food and Drug Administration, and currently undersecretary of the Department of Health.

In a press briefing held July 10 at the National Food Authority, Undersecretary Go reiterated that “the effect of DBP during the short term, in small amounts, is not harmful.” The Office of the Presidential Assistant for Food Security and Agricultural Modernization has been liaising with the DOH on this issue since Day 1, sharing information with the secretary and his team, to ensure the safety of rice in the market.

The secretary has stressed that the alleged fake rice is an isolated case. Daily monitoring by NFA personnel nationwide has yielded no other cases of fake rice. In the meantime, President Aquino has pushed for an interagency investigative task force where the National Bureau of Investigation is the lead agency. They are joined by the Department of Justice and Philippine National Police.

The NFA is continuing to conduct daily inspections and to coordinate with investigators to ensure the good and safe quality of rice.

—RACHEL G. GILLEGO, chief of staff, Office of the Presidential Assistant for Food Security and Agricultural Modernization, Guadalupe Viejo, Makati City