The Department for Agriculture in the Cordillera Administrative Region (DA-CAR) assured farmers of the availability of standby seeds should they need to immediately replace plants damaged by the rains caused by the monsoon and Super Typhoon Carina.

“Ready naman tayo dyan kasi may La Niña preparedness plan tayo. Kasama doon ang paghahanda ng certified quality seeds na pwedeng ipapamigay sa farmers para mapalitan kung meron man nasisira na mga pananim (We are ready for that because we have a La Niña preparedness plan. Part of that is ensuring the availability of certified quality seeds that can be distributed to the farmers to replace damaged plants),” DA-CAR executive director lawyer Jennilyn Dawayan told the Philippine News Agency on Thursday.

Dawayan said she has also instructed the regional office’s Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Division (AMAD) and other offices with Kadiwa trucks to be on standby to assist farmers in case they need help in transporting their produce.

“We have been extending a hand in transporting and we can do it again if only to ensure that the vegetables will reach their destination,” she said.

Cordillera produces about 85 percent of the country’s highland vegetable supply averaging 2 million kilograms of assorted commodities traded daily and transported to different destination in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

Trading at the Benguet Agripinoy Trading Center (BAPTC) continues, with 25 of the 125 traders trucks still delivered vegetables to Divisoria and Balintawak in Metro Manila and Urdaneta in Pangasinan, among others earlier in the day, according to Aida Pagtan, chief of the Regional Agriculture and Fisheries Information Service (RAFIS) after citing reports from their field personnel.

Photos provided to the Philippine News Agency also show that there were traders selling at BAPTC, which is jointly managed by the Benguet State University and the DA, and at the La Trinidad Vegetable Trading Post, which is managed by the municipal government of La Trinidad.

“It is a regular day for some of our vegetable stakeholders,” Pagtan said.

Pagtan said they have yet to compile reports on possible crop damages.

Price monitoring of vegetables shows a PHP10 to PHP20 increase in some commodities, especially the green-leafy vegetables, which are highly perishable.

“Let us hope that the rain will not take so many days so that not so much plants will be damaged and supply will remain stable and sufficient after (Super Typhoon) Carina,” Pagtan added. (PNA)