Traders and importers who wish to import rice could still apply for sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) import clearances, the Department Agriculture (DA) said despite reports that some exporting countries suspended new rice-export contracts to ensure their local supply amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic. “I want to make it known that applications to import rice under the rice tariffication law is still open, and that the Bureau of Plant Industry is open to process SPS import clearances,” DA chief William Dar said. His statement comes after Vietnam suspended rice exports as part of efforts to ensure its food security amid the pandemic. Last year, the Philippines imported nearly 3 million metric tons (MT) of rice, of which 89 percent were from Vietnam.