By Brian Jules Campued
The Department of Agriculture (DA) has assured the public that it is regularly monitoring the costs of basic agricultural commodities in the Philippines amid the reported decline in the prices of onion, tilapia, brown sugar, and other vegetables in February.
In a statement on Monday, Assistant Secretary Arnel de Mesa said the DA as well as its Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Service (AMAS) have been conducting interventions beneficial to farmers and consumers alike such as the Kadiwa ng Pangulo (KNP).
Managed by DA-AMAS, alongside other government agencies, the KNP allows local producers to sell their food items directly to consumers at a low cost, eliminating intermediaries in the market chain.
“KNP adheres to the Bagong Pilipinas campaign of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., which focuses on an all-inclusive plan for economic and social transformation,” DA said.
De Mesa made the remark following the drop in prices of several agricultural products, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority.
PSA data showed that the average value per kilo of red onions has declined to P163.11 per kilo in February from P188.37/kg in January.
Meanwhile, tilapia prices also went down to P167.62 per kilo last month from P169.02/kg in January.
“The average retail price of tilapia for February is also significantly lower than its value in January posted at P168.52/kg,” the DA added.
Around P1.58 price drop was also reported for brown sugar and P5.33 decline for eggplant from January to February.
The value of brown sugar went down to P76.52 per kilo from P78.10 per kilo during the same period while eggplant prices decreased to P86.18/kg from P91.51/kg.
Based on DA’s latest Bantay Presyo bulletin in Metro Manila on Monday, the retail price range per kilo of tilapia is at P130 to P160; eggplant at P50 to P120; local and imported red onion at P55 to P130; and brown sugar at P65 to P90. – avds
