MANILA, Philippines—Local government units (LGUs) all over the country have so far bought over P1.58 billion worth of farmers’ produce amid enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) placed on Metro Manila and other “high-risk” areas in the country, according to the Department of Agriculture (DA).
“Tons of farm and fishery products,” ranging from palay, milled rice, corn, vegetables, fruits, pork, chicken, fish and spices, were bought by around 245 LGUs directly from local farmers since March 15, Agriculture Secretary William Dar said Thursday in a release.
“The LGUs are our primary partners in cascading our sectoral interventions on production to consumption, marketing included. We would like to involve them in the entire value chain to make sure that our support mechanisms reach targeted beneficiaries,” Dar said.
The DA’s Regional Field Offices (RFOs) are responsible for monitoring the sales through their respective Agribusiness Marketing and Assistance Divison.
Since the onset of the ECQ, the DA has been calling on LGUs to buy agri-fishery produce from farmers and fisherfolk and include the products in relief packs for their constituents.
Formation of food value chain clusters
In an effort to focus and strengthen linkages between food producers and markets, the DA said it formed four “food value chain clusters,” namely: Luzon A (CAR and Regions 1 to 3), Luzon B (Regions 4A, 4B, and 5), Visayas (Regions 6 to 8), and Mindanao (Regions 9 to 13).
“Through the clusters, we plan the availability, pre-positioning, and movement of products from the municipal to provincial level, then regional, and finally among clusters,” the DA chief noted. “The mobility plan looks into the movement of agri-fishery commodities from producers, to traders, processors, and wholesalers/retailers, down to the household consumers.”
The DA explained that with the help of LGUs and other agencies, the clusters “identify prime agri-fishery commodities and potential markets, monitor the markets, and coordinate relevant concerns to develop location-specific resiliency plans aimed at attaining higher levels of food sufficiency.”
“In all, in partnership with the LGUs, the private sector, and farmers’ and fisherfolk’s groups, we ensure farmers of a ready market and steady income, as well as provide consumers with affordable, healthy, and nutritious food. Along the process, we also help stabilize the prices of basic commodities,” Dar said.
The DA chief also called on other LGUs to adopt the practice, which he hopes to be institutionalized even after the global health crises has died down.