Another cold storage facility that will provide benefits to onion farmers will soon rise in Cuyapo, Nueva Ecija.
Governor Aurelio Umali, together with Cuyapo Mayor Florida Paguio-Esteban, municipal agriculturist Orlando Ramos and other local officials led on Monday the groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of the facility in Barangay Calancuasan Sur.
The project is under the Department of Agriculture (DA) Regional Field Office III’s High-Value Crop Development Program.
It will benefit members of the Calancuasan Sur Farmers Association which donated the lot for the construction of the facility.
DA Central Luzon Regional Executive Director Crispulo G. Bautista Jr. said on Tuesday that the facility is a much-needed boost for farmers who are unable to preserve their produce due to a lack of cold storage facilities.
Bautista assured that their agency will continue to build onion cold storage facilities that are poised to make a great impact on the lives of the onion farmers.
“Kailangan ng ating mga magsasaka ang cold storage upang ang sobra nilang ani mula sa produksyon ay mas mapatagal. Ito ang aming binibigyan ng pansin ngayon kaya taon-taon ay may alokasyon kami ng ganitong pasilidad (Our farmers need cold storage so that their excess yield can be preserved for longer periods. We are giving attention to this matter. Thus, every year we have an allocation for this kind of facility),” he said in a statement.
Due to a lack of storage facilities, farmers are often forced to market their produce at a low price.
With the construction of the cold storage facility, farmers will soon be able to properly store their produce and obtain a good price for it.
The soon-to-rise onion cold storage facility will have the capacity to hold 20,000 bags of onions.
Last March 9, the DA turned over onion cold storage facilities to Kalasag Primary Multi-Purpose Cooperative (KPMPC) in Barangay San Agustin, San Jose City and Caridad Sur Farmers Multi-Purpose Cooperative (CASFA MPC) in Barangay Caridad Sur, Llanera, both in Nueva Ecija.
Each facility can hold 10,000 bags of onions. (PNA)
