Agriculture Dept. assures public of sufficient vegetable supply for 2021

The Department of Agriculture (DA) on Tuesday assured the public that there is an adequate supply of vegetables for the entire year amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

During a virtual presser of the Task Group on Food Security, DA High-Value Crops Program (HVCP) Director U-Nichols Manalo said there is a “sufficient supply of vegetables” in the country for the rest of 2021.

Citing the DA’s 2021 supply and demand outlook, Manalo said the local sufficiency level of lowland vegetables for the first quarter is seen at 78%.

It is seen to further increase to 83%, 87%, in the second and third quarters, respectively.

In the fourth quarter, sufficiency level of lowland vegetables is seen at 73%, making the full year level at 80%.

Lowland vegetables consist of ampalaya, eggplants, squash, pechay, tomato, and sitao.

For upland vegetables, the DA is projecting a local sufficiency level of 193% for the entire year.

In the first quarter alone, the sufficiency level for upland vegetables is seen at 162%.

It is seen to further increase to 181%, 226%, in the second and third quarter of the year, and settle at 204% in the fourth quarter.

Upland vegetables consist of carrots, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, bell pepper, and pechay.

With its outlook of sufficient whole-year supply, the DA official said that vegetable prices may not spike drastically. — RSJ, GMA News