MANILA – The Department of Agriculture (DA) is now preparing to utilize its PHP1 billion quick response fund (QRF) to protect farmers and fisherfolk from the impacts of rising fuel prices due to the Middle East conflict.
The QRF, which is typically used as assistance during natural calamities, will now be tapped after President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. declared a state of national energy emergency.
“QRF, PHP1 billion, maybe we will request a fuel subsidy for motorized fisherfolk and maybe small commercial (fishing vessels). For farmers, biofertilizer,” Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said in a message to the Philippine News Agency Wednesday.
In a separate phone interview, DA spokesperson Assistant Secretary Arnel de Mesa said they are looking to allocate PHP500 million to procure biofertilizer.
“Very critical ‘yung pag-secure natin ng fertilizer kasi ang iiwasan natin ‘yung bumaba ‘yung productivity natin (It’s very critical to secure fertilizer because we’re trying to prevent the drop in our productivity),” de Mesa said.
“Mayroon nang mga plano kung ano ‘yung pwedeng bilhin in replacement doon sa mga (there are plans in place for what to procure in replacement of the) synthetic fertilizer.”
He said this was agreed upon during the meetings and consultations with the Fertilizer and Pesticide Authority (FPA), regional field offices, and stakeholders, which identified effective biofertilizer products.
De Mesa said the procurement of biofertilizers is crucial in offsetting the projected hike in fertilizer prices should the Mideast tension persist.
“Kung patuloy pa ‘yung problema, we can expect na mas tataas pa ‘yung fertilizer (If the problem continues, we can expect the price of fertilizer to go higher),” he said.
To date, the prices of urea-prilled range from PHP1,653.82 per 50-kilo bag to PHP2,065.88, or an average of PHP1,813.14, according to the recent weekly data of the FPA.
The prevailing price of urea-granular, meanwhile, is at PHP1,806.67 per 50-kg. bag and PHP1,696.94 for complete (14-14-14) fertilizer.
The DA is also intensifying government-to-government collaboration to diversify the country’s fertilizer sources.
Despite the current stable fertilizer inventory of the Philippines, De Mesa said the DA seeks to secure an adequate buffer stock to protect farmers in next cropping season.
The DA earlier announced the release of PHP10 billion under the Presidential Assistance for Farmers and Fishers (PAFF) starting April 6.
About 4.175 million registered Filipino farmers and fishers are set to receive cash assistance under PAFF, amounting to PHP2,325 per beneficiary.
The majority of the beneficiaries are from the rice sector, at 2.197 million; followed by 1.475 million corn producers; more than 102,000 sugar farmers; and about 399,000 fishers nationwide.
The DA also has a PHP150-million approved budget for its fuel subsidy program for registered farmers and fishers, amounting to PHP5,000 and PHP3,000 fuel aid per eligible beneficiary, respectively.
The agency said it is also eyeing to tap almost PHP100 million in unused fuel subsidy funds from 2023 to 2025 to expand the coverage. (PNA)