Dream come true

FARMERS' TRADING CENTER

TO RISE IN GREATER MANILA

By Manny Piñol

Credit to the owner of the photo

Again, here is another case of a crisis which offers windows of opportunities.

Over the weekend, reports from Baguio City said that the Cordillera's vegetable farmers have complained that they are losing money and facing a crisis because of the decision of the City Government of Manila not to allow the display and sale of vegetables along the streets of Divisoria.

Vegetable traders have reportedly reduced the volume of the vegetables they buy from the highland farmers because they were facing difficulties in selling these in Manila's traditional vegetable market.

As Secretary of Agriculture, I will respect the decision of Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada to clear Divisoria's streets of vegetable traders. He has every right to do that.

While this development may initially be considered a crisis especially by our vegetable farmers in the Cordilleras, I look at this as a development which offers windows of opportunities.

I have long dreamed of and planned the establishment of a Farmers' Trading Center in Metro Manila to allow provincial food producers to display their products which could be sold on wholesale basis.

When I was Governor of North Cotabato, the provincial government sponsored the yearly Fruit Festival in SM Megamall in Mandaluyong and later in SM Cebu to promote our fruits to buyers in the big cities.

These Fruit Festivals resulted in the forging of marketing agreements between our farmers and big buyers in Metro Manila.

In fact, it was because of these yearly events that our local banana growers in North Cotabato who are producing the Lacatan table variety are now involved in a thriving and profitable business.

So, how could we turn the vegetable crisis into opportunities?

Yesterday, a Sunday, I called up Undersecretary Segfredo Serrano of the Dept. of Agriculture and directed him to look for a government-owned area in Metro Manila which could be transformed into a Farmers' Trading Center.

The Farmers' Trading Center that I have in mind will be the delivery point of all products coming from the provinces and where wholesale buyers and traders in Metro Manila could go to and buy to their heart's content

.

Vegetables, fruits, native chicken, goats, pork, organic farm eggs and others could be put on display in the Farmers' Trading Center allowing the farmers to sell their produce without going through the rigors of looking for buyers and a place to sell their products.

Live crabs, high-value live fish, shrimps and even dried fish coming from Sulu, Zamboanga, Surigao, Samar, Leyte, Iloilo, Palawan, Mindoro and Quezon could also be sold wholesale in the Farmers' Trading Center.

If the space which the DA could locate would allow it, we could even put up cold storage facilities and chillers so that meat, fruits and vegetables would have longer shelf life.

On Wednesday, I will go up to the Cordilleras to talk to the vegetable farmers initially to reassure them that the DA is working on their problem.

I thank Mayor Joseph Estrada for his decision to clear Divisoria's streets of vegetable traders.

Now I have all the reason to pursue that long nurtured dream of a trading center which could finally allow provincial food producers to have access to the market.

Once again it is proven that "Every crisis offers windows of opportunities."

‪#‎Changeishere! ‪#‎PresRodyCares! ‪#‎DuterteDelivers!

Source: Manny Piñol Facebook Post