The National Food Authority (NFA) announced a P5-billion investment strategy to improve post-harvest technology and equipment in the Philippines.
“Future investments of the NFA will be geared towards postharvest. For this year, we have P5 billion to retrofit or construct warehouses. Next year, we’ll bring in the dryers and milling facilities. Hopefully, these can be completed within two years’ time,” said NFA administrator Larry Lacson.
Lacson assured farmers during a three-day visit to Davao by the NFA Council that the government will start prioritizing post-harvest programs to reduce crop losses and improve farmers’ income.
National Economic Development Authority undersecretary Rosemarie Edillon, who joined the council in Davao, said the visit provided NFA council members better appreciation of the impact of their decisions to farmers’ lives and better insights for future policy formulations.
“This was very useful because it gave us an idea of how it is happening on ground, what the concerns of the farmers are, and also to see the current state of NFA facilities,” she said.
The Davao Del Sur Provincial Farmers Action Council expressed its appreciation for the opportunity to engage directly with the NFA Council.
Lacson said that the NFA will continue to buy palay at competitive rates to ensure they enjoy the financial gains from their hard work.
The NFA Council recently raised the agency’s palay-buying price to a range of P23 to P30 per kilo.
Both the NFA and the NFA Council emphasized the importance of aligning policies with the realities on the ground to advance sustainable agricultural development.
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