The Department of Agriculture (DA) is planning to put up farmers’ trading centers in Bulacan and Cavite to serve as channels of produce from the regions to Metro Manila.
Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol said the DA was looking into how this would be realized amid a lack of trading facilities for farm produce, especially after Manila City Hall’s crackdown and cleanup of sidewalks along Divisoria.
“We are looking for available government properties in Bulacan for commodities coming from the north and in Cavite for those coming from the south,” Piñol told the Inquirer.
“This setup is expected to complement the Department of Transportation’s efforts to address the (vehicular) traffic problem in Metro Manila since big delivery trucks will no longer have to enter the Manila area,” he said.
The agriculture chief said the DA plans to have the trading centers, which would house wholesale transactions, operational within one month. He added the department was coordinating with other agencies in searching for temporary areas for the planned facilities.
Piñol said he intended to meet with vegetable growers in Baguio City as well as vegetable vendors in Metro Manila to gather their inputs on an acceptable setup for the trading centers.
In previous administrations, the DA used to run similar facilities at the Food and Terminal Inc. complex in Taguig City, which has since been privatized.
In a separate statement, Piñol noted reports of complaints from Cordillera’s vegetable farmers about losing money and facing a crisis because of the decision of the City Government of Manila not to allow the display and sale of vegetables along the streets of Divisoria.
He said vegetable traders have reportedly already reduced the volume of produce they were buying from highland farmers.