FORMER Lubao mayor and now 2nd District Board Member Mylyn Pineda Cayabyab visited farmers and poultry raisers in San Luis town, Pampanga on Wednesday, May 12, 2021, as she checks on the status of the local agricultural sector that has been bearing the brunt of the economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic.
Cayabyab visited farmers in Barangay San Juan, where a significant portion of the town’s poultry raisers is situated. At least 14 duck farms are in Barangay San Juan.
Cayabyab said her interviews with local producers revealed a significant reduction in the demand for duck eggs, a major product used in the confectionery industry and street food in the form of balut.
“Demand had not been the same due to the quarantine restrictions,” Cayabyab said, stressing the restrictions on public dining, as well as in the move of people have resulted in a less vibrant demand not just for poultry products but for most of the agricultural produce.
Vegetable hauler Virgilio Nantes, 56, said the sale of ampalaya has not been very good this season compared to the cropping seasons before the pandemic.
He said P25 per kilo now could easily spell ruin if there are a lot of supply of the product in the market and not many takers. The sudden closure of big community markets for disinfection and quarantine restrictions could also mean that products under consignment could remain unsold for days, resulting in spoilage.
“Demand had been the same since people are not really able to step out of their homes,” Nantes said, adding that the situation proves to be more difficult for smaller haulers.
He said the agriculture sector in the countryside is virtually grappling with the economic effects of the pandemic on its own.
Cayabyab said to ease the effects of the pandemic on local agri producers, she had been calling on various sectors to prioritize the buying of locally produced products for community pantries and relief distributions.
Cayayab also promised to bring the concerns of farmers at the legislative level to assist them with better linkages in selling their products amid a less aggressive consumer sector.
Cayabyab bought several kilos of locally produced vegetables from San Luis farmers and distributed these to several community pantries in the province on Wednesday.