EDITORIAL - Going to waste

By the estimates of the Department of Agriculture, up to 30 percent of crops go to waste due to poor logistics. Cordillera farmers will probably say the percentage is much higher; they recently had to sell their highland vegetables at a loss or simply give the crops away after farmgate prices hit rock bottom amid a flood of imports.

New Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu-Laurel said the country also loses from 12.7 to 15 percent of its annual rice production – about 450,000 metric tons – due to the lack of post-harvest facilities. In the past 40 years, Laurel said, the government has not funded any major post-harvest facility. Laurel stressed the need to invest “heavily” in such facilities to cut agricultural losses and reduce prices of commodities. He estimates that adequate logistics services can mean from 10 to 15 percent lower retail prices for vegetables and high-value crops.

Perhaps Laurel, who ran a major fishing business and cold chain logistics firm before he joined the government, can actually do something about these problems beyond talking about them, which is largely what several administrations have done.

With a budget of P1 billion for this year for cold storage, Laurel says the DA can build four such facilities for vegetables and high-value crops, all of them in Luzon. He estimates that P5 billion is needed to set up cold chain facilities in other parts of the country that can be operational by next year. He sees no immediate solution to the problem of overproduction and says there is no cash aid or ayuda available for farmers affected by the glut in cabbage, carrots and other crops.

Laurel says he is no believer in cash dole-outs and instead prefers to distribute seeds and fertilizers to farmers. Unveiling his department’s three-year plan yesterday, he said it includes investing in post-harvest facilities particularly for rice and corn, expanding agriculture and fishery areas and modernizing the agri-fishery production system. He said President Marcos also wants a data-driven information system for keeping track of agriculture production.

Such measures have been discussed for many years now. With all the problems involving agricultural production that the nation faces, it’s time to move beyond talk.