KNP trade fair offers affordable agri products; cuts trading cycle layers

By John Noel E. Herrera

The Kadiwa ng Pangulo (KNP) para sa Manggagawa trade fair in Iloilo City is offering affordable agricultural products to consumers as the event serves as a direct marketing platform for local farmers to sell their products.

The Department of Agriculture (DA)-6 said that the trade fair, which is part of the highlights of the Labor Day celebration on May 1, 2023, has removed the unnecessary layers of the trading cycle, which would benefit both the local farmers and the consumers in the region.

Eliminating middlemen adds to the selling value of the products, with consumers benefitting from freshly harvested crops and other food items at a fair cost, while capacitating the food growers to be agri-preneurs, according to DA-6

KNP is a spillover of the DA’s marketing strategy dubbed Kadiwa ng Pasko – which addressed the high cost of agricultural products during the holiday season – and it aims to aid the rising of food prices due to global inflation.

DA-6 noted that 11 farmers’ associations and 15 micro-small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Western Visayas participated in the KNP, which would run from April 25 until May 1, 2023.

The regional agency added that the participating associations were able to generate around P66,657 in sales during the opening of the exhibit at Molo Plaza in Molo district.

DA-6 OIC Regional Technical Director for Operations Dominador Marquez also said they continue to support the livelihood and living conditions of marginal and small farmers, fishers, and other agri-workers in the region by streamlining programs centered on attaining food security, accessibility, and affordability, just like the KNP event.

“The DA continues to devise the possible means to foster the development and success of farmers and fisherfolks. In the agriculture sector, we call the Manggagawang Pilipino farm workers. This Kadiwa ng Pangulo program is also one way of valuing our farm workers,” Marquez added.

Meanwhile, DA central office earlier said that the Marcos administration vowed to establish more KNP centers across the country as the program has already posted an estimated sales of P5.3 million since its launch this year.

It added that the revival of the KNP program is a collaborative undertaking of the DA, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), the National Food Authority (NFA), and different Local Government Units (LGUs).