MANILA, June 13 -- The Department of Agriculture (DA) is set to finalize the national control policy and launch the mobile application for the PHP20 per kilogram (kg) rice program under the "Benteng Bigas Meron (BBM) Na".

"We plan to have the national policy by October," Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said in an interview on Friday.

The PHP20 national policy is expected to cover control mechanisms on the logistics, sale, distribution, payment, volume allocation, purchase limits, and program expansion, among others.

Tiu Laurel, however, said that the national policy would be officially implemented in January 2026.

Besides the national policy, he said the PHP20 per kg. mobile smart application may also be initially start...