The Department of Agriculture (DA) on Wednesday announced that it has allocated Php 326.97 million worth of assistance to the onion industry in a bid to boost local food production in the country.
In a press release, DA said the assistance was in line with the directive of its DA chief President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr.
To break down the Php 326 million, the agriculture department said it granted the following:
- Php 69.949 million - Onion production support services, including the provision of seeds, seedlings, and other farm inputs
- Php 3.2 million - Irrigation network facilities
- Php 1.9 million - Extension support, education, and training
- Php 6.486 million - Farm production-related machinery and equipment distribution
- Php 2.5 million - Postharvest and processing equipment and machinery distribution
Apart from this, DA is set to establish seven onion cold storage facilities worth Php 240.575 million.
DA said these facilities can cater to 10,000 bags of onion.
The target beneficiaries are the Pangasinan Onion Growers Association in Umingan, Pangasinan, and the Federation of Aritao Farmers Onion, Garlic, and Ginger Association in Aritao, Nueva Vizcaya.
Cold storage facilities with 20,000-bag capacity will also be created for New Hermosa Farmers Association in Hermosa, Bataan; the Nagkakaisang Magsasaka Agricultural MPC in Talavera, Nueva Ecija; and the Valiant Primary Multipurpose Cooperative in Bongabon, Nueva Ecija.
Likewise, Salvacion United Farmers Multi-Purpose Cooperative and the Samahang Gumagawa Tungong Tagumpay Multi-Purpose Cooperative in Rizal and Sablayan, Occidental Mindoro will be given cold storage facilities with 20,000-bag capacity.
Earlier this month, the DA revealed that the country lost 100,000 metric tons of onions in 2022 due to the lack of cold storage and improper handling.
