According to former agriculture secretary William Dar, a Filipino family only consumes 60 kilos of vegetables annually, compared to the average of 120 kilos in other countries.
During the recent Pandesal Forum in Quezon City, Dar pushed for more urban farming in Metro Manila, urging the Department of Agriculture to allocate more budget to it.
“All these years, the Filipino diet became westernized, there is what we call westernization of the Filipino diet. Few young Filipinos eat vegetables. The need to eat more vegetables should be included in the curriculum, from primary, elementary, senior high school. The attitude has to be changed, that is much healthier to eat vegetables and fruits, rather than western food,” said Dar, who tried to introduce urban farming during his time as DA secretary in 2020.
He said urban farming is necessary as an alternative food source as the country is hit by at least 20 typhoons annually. Benguet, the vegetable capital of the country, cannot keep up with the demand once typhoons affect its production.
Unfortunately for urban farming, there is very limited budget for it since the government is still rice-centric.
Another advantage of urban farming is it can help mitigate the impacts of the El Niño phenomenon as the use of water and the growing environment is controlled, making it less vulnerable to droughts or typhoons.
Additionally, when vegetables are sold and consumed within the same urban areas that it is produced, it not only ensures freshness, less transport involved also means reduced carbon emissions as well.
Considering its many advantages, along with the need for Filipinos to increase their vegetable intake for healthier living, urban farming is a program that we should hope the DA seriously considers pushing in the country’s urban centers where fruits and vegetables are becoming uncommon and more expensive due to inaccessibility.*
