Vietnam Supplies 84% of the Philippines' Rice Imports Year to Date

Vietnam Supplies 84% of the Philippines' Rice Imports Year to Date

As of June 18, Vietnam accounted for the vast majority of the country's rice imports, according to Bureau of Plant Industry data, with the next-largest supplier holding less than a tenth of the share.

Key Facts

  • Vietnam supplied 2,112,266.10 metric tons, or 84.35%, of the Philippines' 2,504,150.36 metric tons in total rice imports as of June 18, 2026.
  • Thailand was the second-largest supplier at 7.73% (193,577.11 metric tons), followed by Myanmar (4.81%), Cambodia (2.54%), India (0.40%), and Pakistan (0.15%).
  • Department of Agriculture Assistant Secretary Arnel de Mesa said at a July 8 briefing that first-half imports had reached 2.75 million metric tons, up from 2.29 million metric tons a year earlier.

Vietnam supplied 84.35% of the Philippines' rice imports as of June 18, 2026, according to data from the Bureau of Plant Industry's National Plant Quarantine Services Division. The country shipped 2,112,266.10 metric tons of the Philippines' total 2,504,150.36 metric tons in imported rice recorded so far this year.

Philippine Star reported that Department of Agriculture Assistant Secretary Arnel de Mesa told reporters at a July 8 briefing that first-half rice imports had reached 2.75 million metric tons, up from 2.29 million metric tons in the same period last year.

Vietnam's Share of Philippine Rice Imports

Vietnam's 2,112,266.10 metric tons represents more than five times the combined volume of every other supplier to the Philippines this year. The country has remained the Philippines' dominant rice source since rice trading was opened to tariff-based imports under the 2019 Rice Tariffication Law, and BPI data shows that dominance holding steady through the first half of 2026.

The concentration leaves the Philippines, which the USDA's Economic Research Service identifies as the world's largest rice importer, with limited built-in diversification. A disruption to Vietnamese supply, whether from weather, domestic export policy, or competing demand from other buyers, would have no comparable secondary source large enough to absorb the gap.

bar chart of philippines importing rice suppliers

Bar chart showing Vietnam supplied 2,112,266.10 metric tons of rice to the Philippines as of June 18, 2026, more than five times the combined volume of the next five suppliers. Thailand, the second-largest source, shipped just 193,577.11 metric tons, under a tenth of Vietnam's total. The gap between first and second place is wider than the combined share of every other supplier on the chart.

Other Rice Suppliers to the Philippines

Thailand supplied the next-largest share at 7.73% of total imports (193,577.11 metric tons), followed by Myanmar at 4.81% (120,396.90 metric tons), Cambodia at 2.54% (63,695.00 metric tons), India at 0.40% (9,912.35 metric tons), and Pakistan at 0.15% (3,866.00 metric tons), based on the same BPI dataset. Small volumes from South Korea, Japan, and Italy made up the remainder.

Combined, these five countries accounted for less than 16% of the Philippines' total rice imports through June 18.

Domestic Rice Production in Early 2026

Seasonally adjusted palay (unmilled rice) production reached 4.67 million metric tons in the January to March 2026 quarter, up 1.6% from the previous quarter's seasonally adjusted 4.60 million metric tons, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority. The PSA has not yet released seasonally adjusted production data for the April to June 2026 quarter.

 

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