Complete Value Chain! Farmers, Private Sector, Govt. Join Mindanao Onion Initiative

Four leading Philippine Seeds Companies, a private business group, farmers and two agencies of government – the Dept. of Agriculture RFU 12 and the Agricultural Training Institute (ATI) – will join today’s launching of the Mindanao Onion Initiative in the DA Regional Office in Koronadal City.
The Mindanao Onion Initiative is part of my agricultural advocacies to show to our government policy makers that when there is a confluence of key players in agriculture and government, Food Self-Sufficiency could be achieved.
A company producing farm inputs for Onion production, Tropi Cute, and producers of organic fertilizers will also attend today’s launching.
The Mindanao Onion Initiative will start with the establishment of an Experimental Farm and Learning Site for Onion Production in San Jose, General Santos City where the seed companies in partnership with farmers will showcase their seeds and technology.
Many farmers are actually producing Onion in small quantities in the upland areas of General Santos City, South Cotabato and Sultan Kudarat but they are largely disorganized and vulnerable to price manipulation by unscrupulous traders.
The season-long Experimental Farm will determine seeds are most adaptable to conditions in Central Mindanao, the most productive farming practice and the cost of production which would serve as the basis in determining a guaranteed buying price for Onion to be produced by farmers.
Based on the data gathered during the season-long experiment, large-scale planting targeting an initial 1,000 hectares will start mid-2023 to ensure sufficient supply of Onion by Christmas this year.
A private group composed of my friends who are supporting my agricultural advocacies will complete the value chain with the establishment of a Cold Storage Facility near the production areas.
The private group will engage Onion Farmers in a growership contract with a guaranteed buying price based on the actual production cost to give farmers a fair return for their efforts.
The Mindanao Onion Initiative will serve as a template in boosting the production of agricultural commodities with the farmers getting technical support from private seed companies and government agencies, provided with financing by government banks and assured of a ready market with a guaranteed buying price.
Personally, I hope that the Mindanao Onion Initiative would serve as a “Balancer” and a Sword of Damocles over the heads of the Onion Cartel which had monopolized the trading of this important commodity and manipulated the prices buying from farmers at P30/kilo at peak harvest time and selling hoarded Onions during the lean months at outrageous price levels of up to P700 per kilo.
United, the farmers, well-meaning businessmen in he private sector, seed companies and government, will give the Onion Cartel a dose of their own poison.
#KungGustoMaramingParaan!
#GovernanceIsCommonSense!
#advocacysansselfinterest!