The DA is tasked to Increase food production by fully assisting the farmers and fisherfolk.
President Marcos, who also heads the Department of Agriculture, tasked the DA, the nation's primary agency for agricultural development and food production, to prioritize the development and implementation of various strategies to boost and stabilize the Philippines' food production.
During the Monday flag raising at DA, Undersecretary for Operations and Chief of Staff Leocadio Sebastian revealed that the President had ordered the completion of the operational plan for the Department's catch-up initiatives, which is anticipated to increase production and reduce market prices for fisheries, livestock, and vegetables and rice, corn, and other staple foods.
The Philippine Statistics Authority reported that the June inflation rate reached 6.1 percent with non-alcoholic beverages accounting for 58.3 percent of the upward trend in inflation.
Food inflation increased to 6.4 percent that month from a record-low 5.2 percent in May 2022. This increased from the June 2021 figure of only 3.9 percent for food inflation.
“The acceleration in the food inflation was primarily influenced by the higher annual growth in the meat and other parts of slaughtered land animals index at 8.1 percent. Also contributing to the uptrend in the food inflation was [the] fruits and nuts food group which registered an inflation rate of 1.1 percent, from -2.4 percent in the previous month. The rest of the food groups exhibited faster annual growth rates, except for [the] vegetables, tubers, plantains, cooking bananas and pulses food group which registered a lower inflation of 14.4 percent,” the PSA report.
The agriculture and fishing industries are threatened by the approaching wet season, said Sebastian as he said there is enough rice in the nation for all Filipinos.
Additional fertilizers will be obtained through government-to-government (G2G) arrangements to offset the high prices of farm input brought on by the crisis in Ukraine.
However, Sebastian also urged the DA family to
"serve our farmers and fishermen with greater effectiveness and efficiency, particularly in light of the impending food crisis the nation is currently experiencing."
Tags: #DA, #agriculture, #farmers