San Remigio harvests camote to back SakSak

CEBU - In line with the town’s campaign to have sweet potato as substitute to rice, San Remigio town yesterday harvested more than 100 kilos of sweet potato from a one-hectare lot intended for growing the crop.

“In the long run, the people in San Remegio will be able to plant their own camote in their backyard,” said San Remigio Mayor Mariano Martinez.

Martinez said sweet potato will be sold at a lower price in San Remigio to support the “SakSak” program of the provincial government. SakSak or “Sinanduloy Alang sa Kabusog, Sinanduloy Alang sa Kahimsog” was launched to help ease the impact of increase in the prices of rice.

The SakSak program advocates the mixing sweet potatoes into the rice and further aims at increasing the volume and feeding capacity of cooked rice and the production and value of sweet potato throughout the province.

Governor Gwendolyn Garcia herself visited San Remegio the other day to personally push for the mass production of sweet potatoes, locally known as camote.

The province has launched a contest for the production of sweet potatoes and for the best Saksak program or “Sinanduloy” recipe. Sweet potato contains anti-oxidants and is low in sodium, saturated fat and cholesterol. It is also a good source of dietary fiber, Vitamin B6 and potassium. — Garry B. Lao/JMO (THE FREEMAN)