Manila, March 21 -- The Department of Agriculture (DA) on Friday lauded the local government unit (LGU) in Valenzuela after it flagged the sale of a "President"-labeled rice amounting to PHP62 per kilogram.

This came after the DA conducted a surprise market visit at the New Marulas Public Market in Valenzuela City to check on the retailers' compliance with the set maximum suggested retail price (MSRP) of 5 percent broken imported rice and pork.

In a statement, Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. thanked Valenzuela Mayor Weslie Gatchalian after his order to suspend the sale of "President" rice, which was tagged as local but is suspected to be imported.

"We express our gratitude to the Valenzuela LGU and Mayor Gatchalian for t...