To ensure food availability and sustain food production amid the threat of COVID-19, the Department of Agriculture (DA) is intensifying its promotion of home gardening through the distribution of free vegetable seeds and planting materials nationwide.
“We need to explore all strategies to ensure that food productivity, availability and sufficiency is attained, particularly in this challenging time,” said Agriculture Secretary William Dar, who has been advocating the importance of urban agriculture even before the COVID-19 pandemic happened.
“This way, we can help them attain food security even beyond the enhanced community quarantine period.”
“With the program, we hope to provide households, especially in metropolitan areas, the opportunity to produce fresh and healthy food from their backyard for their tables. This way, we can help them attain food security even beyond the enhanced community quarantine period in Luzon,” Dar added.
The DA, through its Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI), has been distributing assorted vegetable seeds and planting materials to interested households in Metro Manila and other urban areas in the country.
“To sustain the initiative beyond the COVID-19 pandemic, we are establishing community gardens in barangays with vacant areas so they can plant, propagate, and produce their vegetable requirements,” said BPI Assistant Director Glenn Panganiban in a report to the agriculture chief.
The DA-BPI distributes assorted seeds and planting materials for eggplant, tomato, upo, sitao, okra, upland kangkong, mustard, pechay, alugbati, saluyot and onions.
“We urge the public to join us in promoting this urban agriculture program to ensure a continuous supply of home-grown nutritious vegetables on the tables of every Filipino household,” Dar said.
“Home gardening is a productive family activity during this quarantine period.”
“Home gardening is a productive family activity during this quarantine period,” he added.
Those interested to avail of free vegetable seeds and planting materials, kindly call the DA-BPI Office at tel. nos. (02) 8525-7313 or 8524-0837 or email at bpi.crpsd.planning@gmail.com.