Frost no reason for veggie price hikes–gov’t

ATOK farmers race to peel off lettuce leaves that were covered in frost on Jan. 2, which struck at dawn. Frost is a seasonal phenomenon for the coldest towns in Benguet. KIMBERLIE QUITASOL/INQUIRER NORTHERN LUZON

LA TRINIDAD, Benguet—Gov. Nestor Fongwan has urged businessmen not to take advantage of reports on the impact of frost on Benguet farms by increasing prices of upland vegetables.

“It is sad but some businessmen are just using the frost reports as an excuse to jack up vegetable prices,” he said.

Fongwan said the frost affected only 1.5 hectares of the total 30,000 ha of vegetable farms in Benguet. This should not be used to justify the increase in prices, he said.

“The reported damage accounts for less than 1 percent of the province’s supply,” he said, citing reports reaching the provincial agriculture office.

“Benguet farmers anticipate and prepare for the frost season every year. They are aware of the frost’s effect and they know how to protect their crops from frost burn,” he said.

Cabbage and Chinese cabbage are being bought from farmers at the vegetable trading post here for P17 to P23 a kilogram but are being sold in Metro Manila at P50 a kg.

Fongwan, however, admitted that there was a decline in potato and carrot production this holiday season but this could not be attributed to frost damage.

He said 300-kilometer-per-hour winds brought by Supertyphoon “Yolanda” affected potato and carrot farms in November when the root crops were in their early vegetative stage.

In Pangasinan province, traders said they had been enjoying an increased demand for lowland vegetables due to the limited supply of vegetables from Benguet farms.

Cornelio Atchuela, municipal agriculture officer of Villasis town, said prices of “pinakbet” vegetables like eggplant, “ampalaya,” tomatoes and okra almost doubled this month.

Eggplants are sold at P40 to P50 a kg, up from P20 to P25 a kg from October to November last year. Ampalaya now costs P50 a kg, up from P25 to P30 a kg, while tomatoes are sold for P30 to P40 a kg.

Villasis Mayor Libradita Abrenica said despite the increase in prices of pinakbet vegetables, the town would push through with its annual Talong Festival (Eggplant Festival) on Jan. 9, which features pinakbet and “talong” cooking contests.

Villasis, which hosts a vegetable wholesale center (“bagsakan”), is Ilocos region’s top producer of eggplant, with an annual average production of 4,100 metric tons.

Atchuela said the town had more than 400 ha devoted to eggplant year round, using the hybrid long purple variety.

He said there used to be around 1,000 ha devoted to eggplant, but farmers had switched to palay when irrigation canals reached their farms. Kimberlie Quitasol and Yolanda Sotelo, Inquirer Northern Luzon