BAGUIO City market supervisor Fernando Ragma admitted to a slight hike in prices for lowland and highland vegetables at the market since the extreme enhanced community lockdown (EECQ) at the nearby Benguet province.
Ragma said the price of highland vegetables has increased due to the difficulty of goods to pass through checkpoints and reach the city market daily with lowland produce from the nearby Ilocos Region also suffering the same fate.
Aside from the Benguet capital town of La Trinidad, additional areas in Benguet province has been put under EECQ include the mining town of Itogon, neighboring town of Bokod, and Kabayan all of which supply fresh produce to the city and to markets nationwide.
Ragma said a meeting with the Department on Trade and Industry on Wednesday, April 1, explained the difficulty in getting supplies resulting to the hike in prices in the city.
Operations at the La Trinidad Vegetable Trading Post were also put on hold for two days for cleaning and disinfection.
Although exemptions are given for health workers and emergency responders, store owners, farmer and cargo drivers of food and non-food items, skeletal workforce of businesses offering basic services and commodities, there is a difficulty in transporting the goods to key areas.
Ragma added not all goods at the market have increased prices as he relayed local fruits stayed affordable and even cheaper than normal as well as poultry and assured once EECQ of towns are lifted, supply as well as prices will be back to normal.
The market supervisor said reports of the entry of imported fruits from China have also been halted to give way for disinfection before being released to markets nationwide.