DA, La Trinidad market matching set vs middlemen

By Vladymir Mabli

LA TRINIDAD, Benguet -- Dept. of Agriculture (DA)  undersecretary designate for consumer and political affairs Kristine Y. Evangelista, DA Cordillera and the La Trinidad local government set market matching to address increasing vegetable waste in the locality as farmers often leave the veggies to waste due to low prices.
    Through market matching, farmers will be able to directly sell vegetable produce to certain establishments and consumers removing middlemen in the process.
    According to Brigette Mangipay of DA-CAR Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Division, the strategy was discussed to reduce the influence of middlemen and increasing farmers’ profits.
    The DA discussed market matching, as a process where farmer outputs are matched on different market outlets that will surely purchase their products.
    This then aims to increase the income of farmers and lower prices for buyers.
    She added market matching has been done in Cordillera but was only emphasized during this pandemic where cost of goods and supply and demand was affected.
    Based on a meeting regarding market matching that transpired last week, certain issues affected this strategy leading to disappointment.
    First was non-compliance to the contract, second was mode of payment and last -- high volume of goods being sent to national markets.
    Farmers said some middlemen pay the local farmers after a week or even worse, a month-long delay not following their agreement. Moreover, after these goods are delivered to the national market, resellers only purchase certain vegetables in small bulks destroying the quality of the remaining stocks due to oversupply.
    Mangipay pointed out farmers were also to be blamed since some of them waited for the prices to increase before they harvested their crops.
    “Hence, while waiting for the price to increase, the quality of their goods decreases. Di ko alam kung sino ang may kasalanan, kung ang buyer ba or ang farmer. May buyer naman pero dahil sa kahihintay ng farmer sa mataas na presyo ay nasisira ang quality ng kanilang products,” Mangipay said.
    Elvis Gapero, 17 years in the farming sector, said their land owner served as middle man who dictated what to cultivate and when to harvest their crops.
    “That strategy is possible when the middle man is educated and informed on the crops available and needed on the market,” said.
    He added due to increase of vegetable production on the market, prices are affected.
    Thus, while waiting for the prices to increase, their crops are damaged or thrown away.
    Sherlyn Eslao,a farmer from Kapangan, Benguet, said market matching can help farmers address their issues in the agricultural sector, especially in marketing vegetables. They have added that at least without the middleman, farmers can directly sell their products to the consumers and gain more profit.
    This strategy will ensure safe marketing while reducing risks, mainly vegetables being thrown away.
    Asec. Evangelista said through market matching, the government will be able to address oversupply on markets. She added this process can help government identify when there is oversupply at a certain location, the quantity, and who were the farmers affected.