The National Food Authority has asked the help of rice retailers to assure people that there is no fake rice.

In a statement by NFA Administrator Jason Laureano Aquino on Friday, the help of the Confederation of Grains Retailers Association of the Philippines has been sought to “monitor their ranks to ensure that only genuine rice is being sold by their members.”

There were posts in social media warning consumers to be aware of fake rice, and which caused “under anxiety and alarm”, the NFA said.

“A total of 68 persons either uploaded videos of bouncing balls of rice alleged as fake rice or complained about the rice they bought from certain markets,” said Aquino.

Aquino said a total of six raw rice and two cooked rice samples were subjected to analysis by our Food Development Center laboratory.

“The result: samples have starch granules, starch content and sensory characteristics typical of raw and cooked rice,” he said. DMS