The Department of Agriculture (DA) Region IV-CALABARZON through the Lipa Agricultural Research and Experiment Station (LARES) has extended assistance to the San Jose Batangas Consortium of Cooperatives for the transport of agricultural commodities from Sariaya, Quezon to Nasugbu and San Jose, Batangas, for the KAtuwang sa DIwa at GaWA (KADIWA) ni Ani at Kita project of the Batangas cooperatives.
About 2,328 kilograms of agricultural commodities were safely transported and sold to the two municipalities of Batangas on their respective KADIWA schedule. They were squash, radish, eggplant, onion, garlic, papaya, mango, sweet potatoes, calamansi, upo, pechay, sayote, okra, ampalaya, and okra. This was made possible with the two government-issued, service elf trucks of the regional office.
Batangas cooperatives’ KADIWA project is in collaboration with DA CALABARZON in the implementation of community stores and mobile markets in different parts of the province. Fresh and affordable food choices can be offered to residents through KADIWA stores and mobile markets. In the same way, local farmers are reassured that their harvested crops will have sure buyers through market matching activities conducted by the Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Division.
This project is a joint undertaking between farmers, consumers, and government agencies such as DA to create a stable food system during the COVID-19 pandemic. It paves the way for shared logistics, direct trade, and partnership between different stakeholders to ensure food production and food availability in accordance with the enhanced community quarantine guidelines.
A total of 15 KADIWA sites in Batangas have been established since its launch on March 11, 2020, and have served 2,500 families. KADIWA sites have also been carried out in barangays Quezon and Tambo, Lipa City. • (SDAL, DA-RAFIS)
[Photo Courtesy of Mr. Leo Lalican, LARES Staff]
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