• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
About 500 residents of Pulupandan availed of P20 per kilo rice program of the Negros Occidental provincial government, through its partner, the Federation of Irrigators’ Association Central Negros – Bago River Irrigation System (FIACN-BRIS).
The FIACN-BRIS earmarked 50 sacks of rice for Pulupandan residents, especially those in the vulnerable sector, such as the senior citizens, solo parents and persons with disabilities, according to its president, Pedro Limpangog.
A maximum of five kilos of rice were sold by the farmer-irrigators group, which has received farm inputs and labor force support from the provincial government of Negros Occidental.
After Pulupandan, Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson earlier disclosed that the farmer’s group will also visit other local government units.
“We won’t focus on just one area, this will be a rolling store setup,” Lacson said.
As long as there are available stocks of rice, we will continue to assist the rice program of the provincial government, Limpangog said.
The sale of affordable rice by the FIACN-BRIS started in 2023 at P25 per kilo. However, they reduced it to P20 per kilo to align with the Bigasan ng Bayan program of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Limpangog said.
The provincial government has allotted more than P3 million to subsidize its operations, enabling farmers to sell at a cheaper price.*
