TUGUEGARAO CITY, Cagayan —  To help food producers in selling their produce and lessen the layers in marketing,  the Department of Agriculture Regional Field Office 02 (DA-RFO 02) started the first ever PanagDAdapun in Cagayan Valley at DA RFO 02 gymnasium, San Gabriel, Tuguegarao City on April 16-17,2018.

DA Assistant Secretary for Agribusiness and Marketing Andrew Villacorta and DA RFO 02 Regional Executive Director Lorenzo Caranguian led the opening ceremony.

“This time, DA gives an opportunity to farmers and fisherfolk to sell their products at a farm gate price,” Villacorta said talking to shoppers and consumers from the city and employees of the agency. It’s high time for us to eliminate middlemen in the scene.

Some 34 farmer organization, fisherfolk, processor, DA research centers, and line agencies participated in the said event featuring out their products with a total sales of P 310,783.45.

PanagDAdapun featured fresh fruits, vegetables, rice, and other agricultural and fishery products from different farms regionwide that are sold at farm gate prices.

The concept is to bring farmers’ products that will be directly sold to the consumers in urban and rural areas in Region 02 without the intervention of middlemen. It aimed to have a marketing environment with the minimal marketing layers.

DA OIC-Regional Technical Director for Operations and Extension Robert Olinares urged the producers present to bring the agricultural products in DA to sustain the program that has been launched.

Olinares stressed out that by June “employees will be given out free vegetable seeds to plant and create a backyard garden in their own home”.

Buyers were happy sharing that they have saved a lot of money in the two (2) day activity.

Meanwhile, Caranguian formally announced that PanagDAdapun will be brought to the provinces here in the region to ensure a wider range of customers.

“See if we could undertake the next batches of PanagDAdapun in selected places regionwide,” he added. (Report from Mark Anthony M. Gallibu)