Over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country, the Department of Agriculture (DA) aids small enterprises, farmers, and fishermen with transportation services and various marketing strategies to earn income from their own products through the Kadiwa ni Ani at Kita Program.
The program aims to provide various market platforms for the local farmers and fishermen where they can sell their goods and earn additional income. Kadiwa ni Ani at Kita also aims to provide ample supply of agricultural needs to the urban poor areas.
The Kadiwa ni Ani at Kita has four modalities, namely Kadiwa on wheels, direct retail, e-Kadiwa and Farmer’s Produce.
The People’s Television Network (PTV) and DA aired a special episode of “Ani and Kita” featuring its two modalities, Kadiwa on Wheels and Kadiwa Retail Selling, during the August 14 Laging Handa public briefing at 11:00 a.m.
Kadiwa on wheels
One of the beneficiaries of Kadiwa on Wheels, a mobile market, was Sta. Ana Multipurpose Cooperative. According to the cooperative, the DA initiated the assistance program for their products to be sold to other places.
“Natulungan po kami ng Kadiwa on Wheels… sa pamamagitan ng pagbenta ng aming produkto, at saka nakilala ang aming produkto sa iba’t ibang panig ng Pilipinas,” Sta. Ana Multipurpose Cooperative representative Lizza Flores told PTV.
Flores said that their products did not go into waste even with the threat of COVID-19, as Kadiwa on Wheels program continued during the pandemic.
Kadiwa retail selling
DA partnered with several malls and pitched stalls which enabled small enterprises to sell their products to the market.
Local farm NC2 Star Farmville has been participating in Kadiwa’s retail selling program named Farmer’s Produce, which brings local farms’ products to malls around the country.
“Naibebenta po namin nang direkta sa mga mamimili ‘yung aming produkto. Nagkaroon kami talaga ng outlet; nagkaroon kami ng iba’t ibang mamimili,” NC2 Star Farm Ville Corporate Secretary Maria Lourdes Cedullo told PTV.
Cedullo said DA greatly helped their farm to sell their goods despite the lockdown due to the pandemic.
“Noong nangyari iyong pandemic, hindi kami talaga makapaglabas ng mga produkto namin. Talagang nailapit kami sa kanila–sa mga mga mamimili. Iba-ibang panahon, iba-ibang mall, at nagkaroon pa kami ng chance na [makapag-export],” Cedullo said.
“Ani at Kita” is a DA project that taps ‘agripreneurs’ to share their marketing best practices with those who wish to know more about getting their farm products to consumers.
For more details, visit www.da.gov.ph and www.youtube.com/PTVPhilippines. (PTV/DA) / CF-bny