SINGAPORE — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has urged Filipinos to revive the traditional “Green Revolution” and adopt home gardening to counter potential vegetable shortages caused by the looming super El Niño.
Speaking during a press conference in Singapore on Sunday, October 11, President Marcos assured the public that the government has measures in place to maintain stable supplies of rice, pork, beef, and chicken through March of next year.
However, he warned that vegetable production will suffer due to severe dryness and lack of water, prompting his call to return to backyard farming.
“So food supply is assured. The only thing that will be hard hit will be vegetables kasi walang tubig. Tuyot lahat,” Marcos said.
“So sabi ko, balikan natin yung Green Revolution. Let’s encourage everybody. Nagka-Green Revolution na tayo noon, a long time ago. Tapos noong pandemic, nabuhay yung ‘plantita.’ Ituloy na natin yun,” he added.
To mitigate water scarcity, the administration is pushing for aggressive water-saving measures, public education on safe water treatment and filtration, and cloud-seeding operations.
The government is also evaluating alternative learning modalities for schools to protect students from extreme heat, preparing livelihood training for affected farmers through TESDA, and ensuring that hospitals remain fully operational with backup power and medical supplies.