Central Luzon, agri-products supply continues in NCR
The Department of Agriculture of Central Luzon assures that various provinces of the third region will continue to supply products such as vegetables and meat in Metro Manila despite the pandemic faced by the country.
Based on the data of DA Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Division (AMAD), a total of 146,245 kgs of lowland vegetables were sent to the National Capital Region (NCR) at the beginning of the year 2021.
Meanwhile in data from the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI), it is estimated that 9,467 heads of the African Swine Fever (ASF) Free were supplied to NCR.
Through this, the food trading centers established in Central Luzon are helping farmers and fishermen to make it easier to sell their product directly to the market.
Nueva Ecija Agri-Pinoy Trading Center or NEAPTC is established by the Department of Agriculture collaborates with the Local Government of Nueva Ecija to increase harvest and increase the profits of small business farmers and fishermen. In addition to this, it also serves as a customer’s trade center from Metro Manila and neighboring provinces.
It aims to meet food needs specifically vegetables that are affordable to consumers, safe and healthy food for all.
Agriculture Secretary William Dar states that agri-products will be sufficient and the prices of main market products will be strictly monitored to avoid market exploitation.
′′ We want to ensure that we have enough food supply and increase their production, including rice, meat, fish and vegetables (We want to ensure that we have sufficient supply of food and we want to increase the production of these major staples, including rice, meat, fish, and vegetables),” said by the secretary.
Regional Director Crispulo Bautista added that the decrease in vegetable supply in NCR was caused by the recent storms that caused widespread damage to the province of Bulacan and Nueva Ecija last year.
′′ Because of the past four storms, it caused a lot of harm to the farmers that’s why they are experiencing low supply of vegetables in Metro Manila. Farmers in Bulacan and Nueva Ecija are replanting and by February they will start harvesting and will gradually return to normal,” said the director. #