LA TRINIDAD, Benguet – Rep. Eric Yap purchased some one hundred tons of cabbage and assorted vegetables from Carina-stricken farmers from the different parts of the province and subsequently distributed them for free in Metro Manila over the past weeks.
He said that his effort to purchase the produce of local vegetable farmers aims to help them recover from the negative impact of Typhoon Carina and the enhanced southwest monsoon on the marketing of their produce after vegetable trading was disrupted following the closure of several main roads in the province and neighboring areas.
The lawmaker took the cudgels of finding ways to help the farmers sell their produce because the weather disturbance impeded the delivery of agricultural products from the farms to the trading centers due to the closure of the roads leading to the different parts of the province.
Aside from buying the vegetables, Yap also provided meals to farmers who were waiting in line for traders to buy their produce at the Benguet Agri-Pinoy Trading Center.
Earlier this year, Yap filed a bill that seeks to grant the Department of Agriculture (DA) the authority to regulate farmgate prices for highly perishable vegetables.
He claimed that the very low farm gate prices of agricultural crops not only threaten the sources of livelihood of the farmers but also make them vulnerable to potential revenue losses leading to their being indebted which is a cycle that keeps recurring when natural hazards visit the province during the rainy season.
House Bill (HB) 9889 assigns the Bureau of Agriculture and Fisheries Standards, a division of the DA, the responsibility of developing standards to establish fair farmgate prices for highly perishable vegetables. This measure aims to provide a safety net for farmers, ensuring they receive adequate compensation for their produce and safeguarding their economic stability.
Yap pointed out that the proposed law should not be interpreted with the intent of shunning prices above the standard farmgate price as this Act only seeks to impose a standard farmgate price as a baseline for pricing.
In the event of a surplus, the DA must buy vegetables from registered farmers at the farmgate price to avoid waste and to effectively guarantee a certain income level for each harvest. When supplies are adequate, government agencies are also required to buy produce from farmers to supply their food-related programs.
Under the said bill, farmers are required to register highly perishable vegetable crops for price and supply monitoring.
Further, the bill warrants the organization of an inter-agency council to monitor farmgate prices, with the Secretary of Agriculture chairing. Other members of the council are the secretaries of Trade and Industry, Interior and Local Government, and the National Economic and Development Authority.
Yap expressed hope that Congress will immediately tackle and pass the proposed law to help stabilize the sources of livelihood of vegetable farmers who are frequently impacted when natural calamities occur that often lead to them losing heavy losses due to the failure of their products to be sold on time. By Dexter A. See
