PAMPANGA Governor Dennis Pineda had called on rice mills in Pampanga to open and process milling needs of farmers as the enhanced community quarantine imposed in the whole of Luzon coincided with the current rice harvest season.

Pineda said rice mills should open shop to enable farmers to process their harvest for milling. This is in order to secure the steady supply of rice in Pampanga.

He added that rice mills must immediately submit the list of their employees to their respective local government units for the necessary travel passes. Pineda said that proper social distancing protocols must also be observed in all rice mills in Pampanga.

“Farmers and farm workers must submit their names to their respective municipal agriculturists to be able to secure travel passes,” Pineda said, adding that harvesters and their operators who go from town to town must also secure the necessary travel pass with the regional office of the Department of Agriculture.

Pineda also called on mayors and barangay officials to help farmers in securing the harvest for this season in order to not disrupt the rice supply in the critical time of the ongoing quarantine measures.