Relief agencies, LGUs urged to buy from SMEs

A group of flour millers yesterday urged relief agencies and local government units (LGU) to buy relief goods from small and medium enterprises to allow SMEs to still earn a living during the health crisis.

These products, according to the Philippine Association of Flour Millers (Pafmil), could be purchased at factory cost, which means the government can also save some money during the enhanced community quarantine.

Severely affected by the ECQ are the small and medium enterprises that have been forced to stop operations and lay off employees,” Pafmil said in a statement on Monday.

The group proposed that traders in the food sector be allowed to operate in the meantime, which would help ensure that basic food items remain available to the public.

The statement comes as the government considers its next step after April 30, once the extended ECQ in Luzon gets lifted —a decision which could leave around half of the country’s population either still locked in their homes or partially allowed to go out and work.

Pafmil itself has no clear position on the issue, but said that the decision should be “based on available scientific data.” However, the group said it appreciated that the views of the private sector were included as part of the consideration.

But while the next step forward is still up for debate, the group said that there should be “a more systematic way to deliver food aid to the needy ” and a more effective approach in reaching out to those who lost their livelihoods during the lockdown.

“The cries of the hungry are too loud to ignore and the only way to alleviate hunger is to provide food or the means to acquire these items,” the group said.

It also suggested that farmers be exempted from quarantine rules.

Pafmil groups are RFM Corp., Wellington Flour Mills, Philippine Flour Mills, General Milling Corp., Liberty Flour Mills, Pilmico Foods Corp. and Universal Robinson Corp. INQ