Government Urged to Support Onion Farmers from Mindoro, Interventions Being Explored

Anakpawis, a party-list organization, is urging the government to compensate farmers in Occidental Mindoro for losses incurred from onion farming due to liberalized imports and unfair prices. The organization released a statement noting that it’s impossible for farmers from Magsaysay, Oriental Mindoro to earn a decent living as a farmgate price is set at approximately ₱18 per kilo while the cost of production can reach over ₱180,000 per hectare over a 120-day cropping period.

“Continuing liberalization in agriculture, where onion imports are actually promoted by the Department of Agriculture itself, lack of production support and regulation of the local farm gate trade of the harvested onions,” are attributed to Anakpawis’ claims. The organization furthered that seed, other inputs, and fuel should be provided by the government as well as purchasing their harvest at ₱50 per kilo.

Anakpawis also called for farmers’ loans to be written off by the Land Bank of the Philippines. “For the long term, there should be adequate production support and infrastructure development such as irrigation, provision of farm equipment, and post-harvest facilities such as cold-storage warehouses,” said the organization. Civil society groups as well as other organizations have also been asked to directly purchase onions from farmers at fairer prices.

The Department of Agriculture (DA), in response, explained that interventions are already being developed in an effort to support onion farmers. “Local storage cannot accommodate big surpluses… We recognize the need for more storage space (beyond) the two cold storage facilities that we have granted to two cooperatives in the municipalities of San Jose and Mamburao,” said the government agency.

It was also reported that 40% of onion farmers are yet to become members of cooperatives, which adds to their inability of utilizing the support services offered by the government. “Compounding the problem, the new entrants are still not familiar with good agricultural practices in onion production, harvesting, and post-harvest handling that affect the quality of onions in some areas, resulting in farmers burning damaged or unmarketable harvests, as seen on the news,” the DA furthered.

An agreement between the agriculture department and Royale Cold Storage — based in Cabuyao, Laguna — has already been signed to store onions acquired from partner cooperatives. A meeting is also being set between two onion cooperatives from Occidental Mindoro and WalterMart for the possibility of supplying their produce to the supermarket chain. “We are also offering… to sell their onion produce (at) our Kadiwa market system space in Las Piñas, Parañaque, and other areas in the south of Metro Manila,” affirmed the DA.

Two ₱125-million additional cold storage facilities will also be established in Magsaysay and San Jose in Occidental Mindoro under the Philippine Rural Development Project. These new facilities are projected to have a combined capacity of 100,000 bags or 2,800 metric tons.

Source: BusinessWorld