TWO famers’ groups in Iloilo will surely get a fair market value of their palay produce after signing an agreement with local millers and traders in ensuring long-term marketing agreement.
The memorandum of agreement signing was held September 29 after the province of Iloilo was identified as a site in the country for the implementation of Better Rice Initiatives Asia-Fostering Agriculture and Rice Marketing by Improved Education and Rural Advisory Services (Bria-Farmers) project supported by the agriculture department, Agricultural Training Institute, Philippine Rice Research Institute and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit.
The parties agreed on setting quality control standards of palay with 28 percent moisture content during wet cropping season, and 25 percent moisture content during the dry season, guaranteed price of at least P0.50 per kilogram higher than the prevailing market price, and among other matters which are beneficial to the members of the farmers’ associations and the rice millers and traders.
The first component of the project known as Better Rice Production has concluded in October last year.
Other Bria sites are in Southern Leyte and Aurora, Quezon. Six towns in Iloilo are included in the project implementation namely: Leganes, Mina, Oton, Pototan, Sta. Barbara and Zarraga.
During the project launching, farmer Lupo Señolay, chairman of the Lapayon Farmers’ Association, signed the MOA with Glicerio Gallos Jr., rice miller and trader based in Guihaman, Leganes, while Inocencio Sta. Cruz, chairman of Bangga Dawis Farmers’ Association inked the same deal with Department of Agriculture Regional Technical Director Manuel Olanday as the Chairman of the Iloilo Rice Processing Complex Management Board.
As the next one, the Better Market Linkage component aims to discover options for direct marketing channels for rice and by-products and facilitate the formation of farmer organizations and access to market price information for the farmers.