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KORONADAL CITY (MindaNews/12 Sept) – The National Food Authority (NFA) in South Cotabato has created a procurement team to plan out the establishment of four buying stations in four strategic locations in the province to buy palay from farmers.
NFA provincial manager Avelino Usman said they will set up the buying stations in the towns of Suralah, Tampakan, Norala and in the city of Koronadal to make it easier for farmers to sell their farm produce.
Usman also said that the procurement team will directly contact the farmers and will buy their produce like private traders do.
The team will also visit the farmers to transact business, bringing with them moisture meters and platform scales.
“This will make it easier for farmers to sell their farm produce,” Usman pointed out.
The NFA support price to individual palay farmers is currently at P17.40 per kilogram and P17.70 per kilogram to farmer-cooperatives and organizations.
The procurement team has been tasked to pay the farmers in cash instead of issuing checks.
This move is aimed at reducing the volume of rice importation, Usman said, adding that the program also intends to encourage farmers to plant and increase their production.
South Cotabato, a rice producing province, will have a bumper harvest at the end of this year. (MindaNews)