CEBU’S high demand for vegetables means the town of Dalaguete cannot meet the needs of the whole province.
According to the Department of Agriculture, most of the vegetables sold at the Carbon Public Market come from Cagayan de Oro.
This was revealed at the Local Price Coordinating Council (LPCC) meeting held yesterday at the Cebu Provincial Capitol.
Cebu Gov. Hilario Davide III, who chairs the LPCC, admitted that the crops harvested in Barangay Mantalongon, Dalaguete, are not enough to serve the needs of Cebu.
August inflation rose 6.4 percent, mostly driven by the prices of food and fuel.
Consumers have begun to feel the pinch, noting more expensive vegetables, including red chili peppers (see separate story).
The Department of Energy Visayas, for its part, noted that this year alone, there were 35 price movements in fuel, 25 of which were hikes in prices.
All in all, net adjustment for the price of gasoline reached P10.72 while diesel reached P10.80.
Davide wants the LPCC to meet regularly and task implementing agencies to go after those who sell over the suggested retail prices.
Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) 7 Director Asteria Caberte, meanwhile, urged local government units to help the National Food Authority (NFA) in the distribution of rice in their areas.
The NFA assured that there is no rice shortage in the region and it expects 750,000 sacks or rice to arrive for the region in October.
NFA 7 Assistant Director Diocano Alojado Jr. said there will be no price movement of NFA rice this week. He also expects the price of NFA rice to drop in the coming weeks, as there is enough supply in their warehouses and they are expecting more.
Alojado said there are currently 413,000 bags of NFA rice in its warehouses in Central Visayas.
Subsidized rice will soon be available in supermarkets, as part of the government’s measure to lower the prices of the Filipino staple.
Yesterday, the Department of Trade and Industry, National Food Authority (NFA), and Philippine Amalgamated Supermarkets Association (Pagasa) signed a memorandum of agreement that will allow the distribution and selling of NFA rice in supermarkets nationwide.
Consumers may buy up to two bags or four kilograms of NFA rice in participating supermarkets with the same price--P27 per kilogram.
Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said this initiative targets to improve consumer access to affordable rice and ease the long queues at NFA rice outlets in wet markets. “We asked the supermarket association to be outlets of NFA rice so we have additional access to affordable rice. They will pick up from NFA warehouses,” said Lopez. AZLG with PNA