THE Department of Agriculture (DA) vowed to boost production of rice and other agricultural items and make it more accessible to consumers before the end of the year.
In a televised interview on Wednesday, Agriculture Undersecretary Kristine L. Evangelista disclosed that among the initiatives is promoting urban gardening or agriculture, and planting of cash crops, as well as providing farmers access to fertilizers, which have recently become more expensive.
No less than President Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. earlier said the country will be negotiating with several countries to secure cheap fertilizer through a government-to-government arrangement.
“The idea of finding a way to bring down the cost of fertilizer is one of the solutions to help our producers to be able to come up with a better yield,” Evangelista said. The agriculture official said they will also strengthen their Kadiwa program, wherein farmers will be able to sell their products directly to consumers, through the government.
She said they will also provide logistical support through farm-to-market roads to farmers to help them transport their agricultural products.
“So these are the steps we are doing now aligned with the directives of our President and Agriculture Secretary,” Evangelista said.
Marcos ordered DA to implement programs that will increase farmers’ yield to ensure the country’s food supply and keep the prices of local food items stable.
“So increasing the yield [of farmers], is something that we are looking into and that is something we intend to achieve within the year also,” Evangelista said.
“We are looking at the activities that we have to put in place, including the necessary funding requirements to be able to attain the goal,” she added.