Empowering the farmers with adequate knowledge, appropriate technologies and ample support will lead to a sustainable vegetable industry in the region.

Presently, there is high demand but low supply of vegetables in the region. Data from the Philippine Statistics (PSA) show that Caraga has a total of 4,900 hectares planted with vegetables.

During the crafting of the roadmap for vegetables, the Department of Agriculture Caraga High-Value Crops Program Coordinator Marco Antonio Morido said there is a need to increase production areas and this has been supported by the DA through seed distribution which aims to lower production cost of farmers as well as provide them access to quality seeds.

Vegetable Growers Association President of Agusan del Norte Dominador Buenafe said that the vegetable industry of the region can be more competitive if local producers are given the needed assistance, especially in financing and marketing.

Upon discussion, it was noted that vegetables from Caraga are expensive mainly because of the high cost of inputs. Some crops particularly the highland vegetables are not suitable for the Caraga climate.

Because of the low supply, vegetable growers of Caraga have weak market linkages since they often cannot meet the required volume of buyers. “The farm clustering approach is ideal for the region in order for small scale farmers to meet the demands of the market thus we are promoting this to our vegetable growers here,” Morido also said.

The farm clustering approach is done by merging several smallholder farms committed to establishing a market-linked agro-enterprise within a defined territory.  This is a way to increase the productivity of the cluster thus making them more competitive.

Currently, the bulk of vegetables produced locally, apart from those marketed within the region, are sold to Cebu and Leyte.

DA-Caraga conducted the crafting of a roadmap to obtain the inputs of the stakeholders on the issues affecting the industry and how to steer it to the right direction. The activity was held on November 11 in San Francisco, Agusan del Sur and was participated by farmers, Local Government Units, and DA attached agencies.

Elene Espina, a vegetable grower from San Francisco, Agusan del Sur said that with the developments to come, she looks forward to the day that they will no longer be ordinary farmers but rather farmer-entrepreneurs who are able to stand on their own. (Vanessa Pontillo/DACaraga)