Highland veggies distributed as relief goods

LOCAL government units all over the country are buying vegetables from the Cordillera Administrative Region to be distributed as relief packs amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

Instead of letting highland vegetables go to waste, the town of Bocaue in Bulacan bought more than 13,000 assorted produce from farmers in Bauko, Mt. Province.

In a social media post, Mayor Eleanor Joni Villanueva-Tugna said the state of highland farmer’s difficulty in the transporting of highly perishable vegetables amid the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) prompted them to purchase the vegetables.

The local government bought broccoli, cabbage, chayote, potatoes, and carrots.

The mayor added this is their way of helping local farmers affected by the global pandemic, saying the relief packs now have a nutritional value for the good of their residents.

In Apayao, the Provincial Government, through the Office of Agricultural Services, distributed relief packs with locally produced vegetables from the towns of Calanasan, Kabugao, Pudtol, and Sta. Marcela.

Close to 10,000 kilos of ampalaya, cabbage, squash, patola and upo were given to different municipalities.

Meanwhile, in Kabayan, Benguet, Councilor Ghislyn Marave said majority of the farmers and drivers opted for safety and health over livelihood as barangays Ballay, Bashoy, Batan, Eddet, Gusaran, Pacso, Tawangan decided not to bring the latest harvest to the markets.

“A not so easy decision but would also give them peace and assurance that they can always go back to their livelihood when all of this will pass,” Marave said.

In the latest Memorandum Circular 9 series of 2020, the agriculture department ensured unhampered movement of all cargo, agriculture and fishery inputs, food products, and agribusiness personnel nationwide emphasizing that all farmers and farmworkers, fisherfolk and agribusiness personnel to be exempted from doing home quarantine through a series of consultations with sectors.