LET me continue with issues relating to the rice price cap. I don't think the administration's policy on the price cap on rice was a very well-thought-out move, and I doubt it will be effective. It penalizes those who follow the rules and benefits those gaming them. If the government really wanted to give temporary relief to consumers, then there should have been subsidies rather than caps so you still benefit the consumers without penalizing the retailers by forcing them to sell below their cost. That is more cumbersome and requires a government system that is beyond our woeful capabilities, but that is not the point. Now, they are taking half a step in that direction anyway. Look at the food stamp program in the US if you want an example of a targeted subsidy program.
Successful countries and the European Community also buy mountains of staples, including grains, meat and butter, stockpile them, and sell some at a loss or donate some to keep their agricultural sector satisfied and maintain food security. Go to Hong Kong. A lot of the chicken sold is from France, and pork is from Denmark.
They view the loss as a necessary price to pay for social peace, food security, and a peaceful and productive agricultural sector that supports prices provide. The free-market USA that our Washington Consensus types think they are emulating does the same. So does Japan. Why? Food security for countries with substantial populations is not something to leave to the vagaries of the market. It is a necessity for a stable country.
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