Senator Lito Lapid has urged the Department of Agriculture (DA) to directly buy unsold crops from Benguet farmers and reallocate them to families affected by recent severe weather, preventing agricultural waste.
The proposal follows reports of local farmers discarding cabbages and carrots along the Labey-Lacamen Road in Tublay after severe weather led to plummeted market demand and crashing farmgate prices.
Under Lapid’s initiative, the purchased vegetables would be distributed to evacuees and typhoon-hit communities, providing immediate relief while helping local growers recover their production costs.
Lapid appealed directly to Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. to implement a “rescue-buy” program for viable harvests.
“Kahit papaano mapapakinabangan ang gulay ng mga nasalanta ng bagyo at habagat. Kung bibilhin ng DA ang mga gulay, malaking tulong din ito sa mga magsasaka sa Benguet para mabawi ang kanilang puhunan at gastusin sa pagtatanim at pag-aalaga ng mga gulay,” Lapid stated.
The senator, who is an active farmer himself, also advised the agency to explore non-food options for sub-par produce—such as converting surplus crops into livestock feed or agricultural inputs—to avoid total disposal. Similar intervention schemes previously succeeded in the region, including a May operation in Atok where 146 farmers offloaded nearly 80,000 kilograms of surplus vegetables with government logistics support.
Lapid emphasized that combining forces with civic groups and non-governmental organizations could scale up these rescue efforts across Benguet, Cagayan Valley, and other impacted agricultural hubs.