DA vows support to Urban farmers in Baguio

The Cordillera office of the Department of Agriculture (DA-CAR) committed to continue providing the appropriate support for the success of urban agriculture in various agriculture-based barangays in the city.

DA-CAR regional executive director Dr. Cameron Odsey stated that as part of the ongoing registration of agriculture industry stakeholders in the government’s Registry System for Basic Sectors in Agriculture (RSBA), the agency registered thousands of farmers from the different barangays in the city for them to be avail of assistance available in various support mechanisms.

He added that the agency also continues to support urban farmers in 3 initial barangays in the city such as Happy Hallow, St. Tomas School Area and Irisan, for them to have sustainable agriculture-based sources of livelihood.

Last Monday, Odsey turned over to city officials and recipients of several freezers to be used to ensure that meat products are kept in the proper temperature to prevent these from being destroyed in the process of preserving the meat products to be sold in the different markets around the city.

Moreover, he disclosed that the purchase of two mobile freezers by the agency has already been bid out to be used to preserve meat products while being transported from Metro Manila to the established source in the city.

According to him, the DA had also provided local farmers with supply of certified seeds of various vegetables for agricultural crop production, aside from extending the needed support to the lucrative coffee production in some parts of the city.

The DA-CAR official urged residents to maximize available spaces in their backyards for the production of their food supply, especially vegetables and other cash crops, to help in sustaining urban food security and help in enhancing the preservation and protection of the environment aside from helping in the government’s solid waste management initiatives by working on recycled materials for food production.

At the same time, he encouraged people to embrace the practice of urban gardening in areas that have limited spaces to provide added attractions in their places instead of being confined to areas that are full of structures to help in improving the state of the environment where they live.

In 2018, the city government institutionalized the celebration of Urban Farmers Month every May to pay tribute to the contribution of agriculture industry stakeholders in the different parts of the city and recognize their contributions to food security in an urban setting.

Since then, the city, through the City Veterinary and Agriculture Office (CVAO), has started to line up simple but meaningful activities for the annual celebration focused on the advancement of the state of urban agriculture that will be beneficial to the agriculture industry stakeholders.

The local legislative body declared some 16 barangays in the city as the seat of agriculture because of the presence of various agriculture-related activities in the said areas. – Dexter A. See