NORTHERN Mindanao agriculture department regional technical director for operations Carlota Madriaga on Friday sought to suppress the panic of local rice farmers in the region over plunging palay buying prices.
“The agency is on top of it,” said Madriaga, adding not to be inflated by the situation.
Madriaga said the agency is primed to provide the needed technical assistance to local government units (LGUs) and the farming sectors.
Madriaga also don't think there was a snowball effect.
She said DA-10 through its Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Division (AMAD) is closely monitoring the palay price situation in the region.
"Keeping the palay price high and competitive requires the concerted effort of all concerned sectors,” said Madriaga.
Government agencies, the LGUs, and the farmer organizations should reach out to each other to come up with a cohesive action plan, according to her.
She also cited the "big brother-small brother" marketing strategy to help farmers command better market prices for their products.
Through the big brother-small brother strategy, Madriaga said rice farmers’ cooperatives, associations in an area will be clustered, where one association will lead the converged groups (as a big brother) to consolidate farm products of other allied associations (small brothers) for bulk selling to potential buyers.
“Thus enabling them to profitably market their produce,” explained Madriaga.
She said this strategy will be widely implemented in the region as DA-10 will put in full swing the Farm and Fisheries Clustering and Consolidation (F2C2) Program next year.
With the pandemic adversely affecting our agriculture sector, we are appealing to our private partners, the agri traders to help our farmers by buying their produce be it palay, corn and other produce at a higher price, according to Madriaga.
"Our farmers need our help more than ever this time,” Madriaga stressed. (Angie Cabig/Azbie Talib/DA-10)
