Benguet veggie glut spurs rescue buy
BAGUIO CITY—A rescue-buy initiative in Atok town, Benguet, has helped 146 farmers sell nearly 80,000 kilos of vegetables amid a prolonged price crash, while advancing calls for fair farm-gate prices and long-term reforms in the highland vegetable industry.
Project UBBO, or Unified Buying and Bayanihan Operations for Atok vegetables, facilitated the sale of 79,235.75 kilos of assorted vegetables as of May 28, connecting farmers directly with institutional buyers as oversupply drove prices to levels that often failed to cover production costs.
Atok Councilor Kelly Denn Tomas, who spearheaded the initiative, said the program was designed not only to move surplus vegetables but also to ensure farmers receive prices that allow them to recover their production expenses.
“For us, the true impact is not measured in tons. It lies in the fair pricing we have always advocated for,” told the Inquirer.
“In this crisis, the fair price made vegetables affordable for consumers without causing further harm to our producer-farmers,” she added.
The vegetables sold through the initiative included cabbage, Chinese cabbage, chayote, tomatoes, potatoes, broccoli and radish sourced from Atok’s eight barangays—Paoay, Cattubo, Pasdong, Topdac, Abiang, Poblacion, Naguey and Caliking.
The program was made possible through partnerships with the Quezon City government and several barangay local government units, McBride PET Corporation, the Consortium of Siged Farmers and Responsible Markets through Harvest & Hope, and the Vigan City government.
Tomas said Project UBBO was conceived as an emergency response to help farmers secure fair value for their harvests amid a prolonged market slump caused by oversupply.
For vegetable growers, pricing can mean the difference between recovering costs and sinking deeper into debt. Expenses for seeds, fertilizer, pesticides, labor, transportation and hauling are often financed through loans or borrowed capital. When prices collapse, many farmers are left with debts despite months of work in the fields.
“We could have easily chosen to give ayuda (aid) instead, but our farmers will appreciate more if the fruits of their months of labor are bought at a fair price and not go to waste,” Tomas said.
Fram-gate price
Johnny Butangen, president of the Atok Good Agricultural Practitioners Association, said P30 per kilo is a fair farm-gate price for cabbage and Chinese cabbage, enough for farmers to recover production costs.
He said a typical 2,500-square-meter (sq m) vegetable garden can yield three to five tons of potatoes or carrots and more than 10 tons of cabbage or Chinese cabbage.
“Naturally, farmers would choose to plant the crop with higher yield, hoping to earn more,” he said.
According to Betty Listino of the Pansigedan Advocacy Cooperative, there are more than 100,000 vegetable farmers in Benguet, many cultivating an average of 2,500 sq m of land.
Listino said price crashes are common during the summer months, usually from March to May, after the peak harvest season from November to February. However, she noted that the current downturn has been more severe and prolonged than usual.
“The usual drop in farm-gate price is not as sharp as now,” she said.
Data from the Department of Agriculture-Cordillera Administrative Region show that as much as 2,000 tons of assorted highland vegetables are traded daily in Benguet, sourced from farms in Benguet, Mountain Province and Ifugao.
Records from the Benguet Agri-Pinoy Trading Center from January to May show a steady decline in wholesale prices of key vegetables. Cabbage experienced the steepest drop, falling from around P10 to P18 per kilo in January to as low as P4 per kilo by April and May. Carrot prices also declined from P20 to P35 per kilo earlier in the year to around P10 to P20 per kilo in May, while chayote remained relatively stable at P5 to P12 per kilo.
Listino said staple crops such as cabbage, Chinese cabbage, carrots, chayote and potatoes are often hardest hit during price crashes because they are relatively easy and quick to grow, usually maturing within three to four months.
She added that crop choices often depend on local climate conditions and access to irrigation. This season, many farmers planted cabbage, contributing to the current oversupply.
Listino also noted that during previous market downturns, traders, disposers and financiers absorbed much of the losses. This year, however, they are struggling.
Tomas has repeatedly noted that Project UBBO is not a permanent solution and cannot absorb all vegetables harvested in Atok.
Reforms
Calls for broader reforms have also been echoed by civil society groups and researchers from Benguet State University and the University of the Philippines Baguio, who recently submitted a position paper to Sen. Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan, urging comprehensive reforms in the highland vegetable sector.
Their proposals include an immediate moratorium on imported highland vegetables, a national development program for the sector, the institutionalization of a university-led data analytics center and strategic logistical support for farmers.
The Pansigedan Advocacy Cooperative also operates its own rescue-buy initiative, Sagip-Ani 30-30-30, which sells vegetable packages.
