Benguet farmers let crops rot due to oversupply 

Farmers in Atok, Benguet were faced with a huge blow from high fuel prices. Some have stopped harvesting due to dwindling profits, leaving crops in danger of going to waste.

According to Ian Cruz’s report on “24 Oras” on Thursday, Elmo Chuga of Paoay, Atok, Benguet is unable to harvest his cabbage crops. Their produce is now at risk of simply rotting in the field to be used as fertilizer.

Elmo and his fellow farmers were waiting for market prices to improve, following a week in late March when they saw zero profit in the trading post at La Trinidad. They had to sell their crops at a staggering low of P4 to P8 per kilo.

“Wala na, kapag inani pa namin ‘yan, kami din yung napagod mag-ani. Wala namang kahit kunti man lang na papunta sa amin,” said Elmo. 

(It’s over. If we still harvest those, we’ll just end up exhausting ourselves for nothing. Not even a small amount [of profit] goes to us.) 

The farmers feel that their sales were even better during the pandemic, as many bulk buyers were purchasing produce to be distributed as food aid in various areas.

“Masakit man sa pakiramdam na wala man lang makuhang kahit kunti para gagamitin ng mga pamilya…Magtanim ulit kung talagang wala,” said Elmo. 

(It hurts to feel that we can’t even get a little something to support our families... [We will just have] to plant again if there’s really nothing left.)

Like Elmo, Lincoln Elias also suffered heavy losses when he brought his cabbage to the trading post during the last week of March. Despite this, he continues to harvest his crops in the hope of selling them for P15 to P20 per kilo. 

“Para hindi masira sa halamanan. Ibenta mo lang para may maipagbili ka ng bigas lang,” said Lincoln.

(So that they don’t just rot in the field. You just sell them so you can have enough to buy even just some rice.) 

PJ Haight, a fourth-generation farmer, is unable to harvest around 5,000 kilos of pechay. He said that with the costs of labor, trucking, diesel, and processing fees at the trading post, he would already be operating at a loss.

“Sais-kwatro [per kilo], eh parang namigay ka na lang,” he said. “Nabubulok na talaga kasi hindi mo naman ma-consume ‘yan, ang dami.”

(P64 [per kilo]—it’s like you’re just giving it away for free. They are really rotting now because you can’t possibly consume all of that; there’s just too much.) 

Another problem facing many farmers in Benguet is the total lack of available diesel. Since March 21, both gas stations in their town have been sold out of diesel and gasoline. 

With the hot weather, regular irrigation using diesel-powered pumps is essential. 

They are now further squeezed by the ballooning cost of fuel, which they are forced to source from La Trinidad or Baguio City, where purchase limits are strictly enforced.

“Mahirap daw kumuha tapos yung nakausap ko po kanina na may-ari, pupunta ka doon, ibibigay na presyo raw sa kanila ay yung presyong may patong na,” said PJ. 

(They say it’s hard to get [supply], and the owner I spoke with earlier said if you go there, the price they’ll give you already has an extra markup.) 

GMA News has reached out to the Department of Energy regarding the lack of available diesel in Atok. 

The Department of Agriculture has also been sought for a comment. But the department earlier said that cold storage facilities are necessary to address the oversupply. —Vince Angelo Ferreras/LDF, GMA News