FARMERS GRANTED P270-M LOAN
TO PRODUCE MORE VEGETABLES
By Manny Piñol
The Department of Agriculture has opened a P270-M loan window for thousands of vegetable farmers in the four mountain towns of Bukidnon Province, most of whom belong to the native Talaandig Tribe, to allow them to expand their farms and produce more.
Granted under the Production Loan Easy Access (PLEA) Program implemented by the Agricultural Credit Policy Council, the credit agency of the Agriculture Department, the loan consists of P250-M for production support and P20-M for marketing.
The loaning program covers the towns of Impasugong, Talakag, Sumilao and Lantapan, called the IMTASULA Vegetable Bowl, all cool mountain towns of Bukidnon bordering Lanao del Sur.
The planting vegetables in the area has been going on for decades after several Igorot vegetable farmers migrated to Bukidnon and introduced vegetable farming.
For years, however, their capacity and interest to produce more have been dampened by the lack of financing and the control of the prices by traders based in Cagayan de Oro City.
In the whole IMTASULA Region, farmers produce vegetables from an estimated 11,000 hectares through what they call “Sariling Sikap” method, meaning they relied on whatever financing and help they could get.
When I visited Talakag town on Sept. 9, a Sunday, farmers told me that during peak harvest season Brocolli and Cauliflower would be bought for only P15 per kilo, Carrots at P5 to P10, Cabbage at P8 to P12 and White Potato for P20.
They also had to pay high interest rates for their loans from traders which they use to buy seeds, fertilizer and other farm inputs.
A week after my first visit, I came back to Talakag on Sept. 14 and brought with me the officials of the conduit bank used by ACPC who made available immediately P20-M to be used in buying the vegetables produced by the farmers.
The DA also turned over four farm tractors, 25 work animals including plows, 1,000 pieces of plastic crates and arranged for the shipment of the first delivery of vegetables to Metro Manila using a refrigerated van.
A P250-M loan portfolio, enough to finance production in 5,000-hectares, is now being processed and will be made available to the farmers in the soonest possible time.
The mayors of the four towns have agreed to the DA proposal to draft a 5-Year Master Plan for Vegetable Production in the IMTASULA Region.
This program aims to produce vegetables in 50,000 hectares with a funding requirement of P2.5-B.
The Master Plan will also include the identification of other infrastructure requirements of the area to produce more like irrigation facilities and farm to market roads.
(Photo of tribal kids hopping on a brand new farm tractor and other photos were taken during the turn-over of the P20-M marketing fund loan and other interventions by the DA to the vegetable farmers of Talakag, Bukidnon on Friday, Sept. 14. Photos by Biyaheng Bukid team of the DA OSEC))
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