The Department of Agriculture (DA) said local government units (LGUs) have bought over P1.58 billion worth of agricultural goods directly from farmers and fishermen since the imposition of Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine (ECQ). “We are indeed happy to report that since the start of the enforcement of the ECQ, around 245 LGUs heeded our call to patronize the products of our farmers and fishers and make these part of food packs distributed to their constituents. This number is certainly growing as we speak,” Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar said in a news statement. The DA said the farm produce procured by LGUs include palay, milled rice, corn, vegetables, fruit, pork, chicken, fish and spices. The DA said the clusters, in coordination with the LGUs, “identify prime agri-fishery commodities and potential markets, monitor the markets, and coordinate relevant concerns to develop location-specific resiliency plans aimed at attaining higher levels of food sufficiency.”

Arcalas, J. E. Y. (2020, May 8). Over P1.58-billion sales: LGUs buy produce directly from farmers and fishermen since lockdown. BusinessMirror, p. A4.