With the approval of majority of the local chief executives in Benguet during the Provincial Inter-Agency Task Force (PIATF) meeting Tuesday, Governor Melchor Diclas issued Executive Order 2020-054 lifting the schedule of vegetable delivery of farmers to La Trinidad Vegetable Trading Post, Benguet Agri-Pinoy Trading Center, and Nueva Vizcaya Agricultural Terminal effective September 2, 2020 until further notice.
All vehicles delivering vegetables to said trading centers are now allowed entry in all control points on any day.
This followed feedback from some farmers relating the fall of vegetable prices due to the imposed scheduling of delivery of vegetables to the three trading centers.
Meanwhile, according the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPAg), the decrease of prices of some vegetables may have been affected by the imposition of enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in Manila early in August where human movement is too restricted. They also said that closure of tourism is one factor affecting the low demand of vegetables causing falling prices.
The schedule of delivery of vegetables implemented through Executive Order 2020-27 on April 21, 2020, is a measure to ensure the observance of social distancing in the trading centers and to restrict human movement to prevent the spread of the Novel Coronavirus. Complaints have been raised early in April by some netizens regarding buyers and traders not following physical distancing at the La Trinidad vegetable trading post.
Farmers who have direct buyers in La Trinidad apart from the said trading centers have been excluded from the schedule.
Governor Diclas reminded the farmers to still strictly follow health and safety protocols and assume responsibility of their undisposed produce.
Farmers in Buguias; Atok; Kabayan; Sablan; Itogon; La Trinidad; Kapangan; Bauko, Mt. Province; and Balete, Kayapa, Nueva Vizcaya were scheduled to deliver their produce on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday; while Mankayan, Kibungan, Bakun, Tuba, Tublay, Bokod, and Tinoc in Ifugao were scheduled on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday.
The schedule was based on data studied by the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist.