Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel revealed Tuesday that more than 30 percent of the country’s agricultural produce is wasted due to poor logistics systems.
“We also have a very big move on the logistics – 30 percent of our produce especially of vegetables is gone because of wastage, because of the poor logistics system in our food supply chain,” Laurel said during a Palace briefing.
“If we can lessen or hopefully almost eliminate the losses, that will be equivalent to at least 10 to 15 percent less cost on our vegetables and high-value crops like fruits,” he added.
This developed as Laurel unveiled before Cabinet members an ambitious P1.3-trillion, 3-year comprehensive plan to increase agricultural productivity, lower food costs, ensure food security, and make farming and fisheries a more bankable investment alternative.
“Our goal is to modernize Philippine agriculture to spread benefits across the entire value chain. Farmers and fisherfolk should get fair value for their produce, prices of goods should be affordable, while traders, processors, and retailers should be able to generate reasonable profits,” he said.
“It’s important to address the decades-old inequity where farmers and fishers do not really benefit from the fruits of their labor. We also envision making farming and fisheries viable for investors and a career option for young Filipinos,” Tiu Laurel said.
The department also assured the public that the Philippines has enough rice supply, supported by recent inventories conducted in December and January.
Tiu Laurel said the country has ample supply in addition to upcoming rice deliveries from other countries.
“As far as supply is concerned, we have enough rice – our stocks were relatively healthy in December, and January shows a continued robust supply. Additionally, there’s more rice on its way. However, predicting prices is challenging due to the global increase in world prices, attributed to the El Niño phenomenon,” Laurel said.
Laurel said that even prominent rice-producing nations such as Thailand and Vietnam are grappling with elevated rice prices.
