THE Executive Committee of the Davao Food Terminal Complex (DFTC) has proposed an initial budget of P176.1 million for the improvement of the food terminal.

During the meeting Thursday, July 18, at the City Agriculturists Office (CAO), the budget will be utilized to put up infrastructure that will be beneficial to farmers and bolster.

“We are hoping that the budget will be approved for 2020 because we are asking the Department of Agriculture (DA) for the funding support,” Davao City Assistant Administrator on Operations lawyer Lawrence Bantiding said in a phone interview Friday, July 19.

Among the infrastructure that will be build are the Internal Road Concreting and Drainage System at P95.4 million; electrification of complex (P8.6 million); Dry and Cold Storage Building (P15.6 million); Laboratory Building (P8 million); Food Processing Building (P18.5 million); construction of perimeter fence (P17.2 million); area landscaping, site beautification and parking area paving (P3 million); Materials Recovery Facility Segregation Area (P700,000); Parking Shed Building (P1 million); and Sewage Treatment Plant (P8.1 million).

Bantiding said the proposed additional infrastructure are needed to step up the operations in the DFTC.

“Kailangan po ‘yung mga infrastructures, facilities, and equipment in order for us to increase shelf life ng ating mga products as we envision our products na hindi lang ditto sa Davao or sa region but also for export,” he said.

The execomm is composed of the CAO, Assistant City Administrators Office, Sangguniang Panglungsod, City Engineers Office (CEO), City Architects Office, City Economic Enterprise (CEE), and Davao Region Agriculture Cooperative (DRACO).

Last May 28, the P1.086 billion food complex in Toril officially opened ensuring agricultural products are directly sold to consumers without the intervention of middlemen.