FOOD MARKET LAUNCH. Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson (left) turns over a food lane vehicle pass and identification card to Grab rider Ramil Talavera during the launch of the Negrense: Kadiwa ni Ani at Kita store at the Negros Food Terminal Market in Bacolod City on Wednesday (April 1, 2020), in the presence of Provincial Agriculturist Japhet Masculino (2nd from left) and Jose Albert Barrogo (right), chief of the Department of Agriculture 6 (Western Visayas) Regional Agricultural Engineering Division. Customers can order fresh farm produce by using the mobile app of foodservice delivery providers. (PNA photo by Nanette L. Guadalquiver)
BACOLOD CITY – The Negrense: Kadiwa ni Ani at Kita, an agricultural products store, opened here on Wednesday to bring fresh farm produce to the homes of Negrenses.
Located at the Negros Food Terminal Market on North Capitol Road, the facility is a joint project of the Department of Agriculture (DA) 6 (Western Visayas), province of Negros Occidental, and Eco-Agri Development Foundation.
Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson, who led the launch with Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPA) chief Japhet Masculino, said the government needs to find ways to ensure the people’s access to food while the province is under a 14-day enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) due to the threat of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).
“More than ever, we need to be able to send these produce to our constituents. The people’s movement is now being limited. Only one member of the household is allowed to go out,” he added.
Jose Albert Barrogo, chief of the DA-6’s Regional Agricultural Engineering Division, said during this period of the ECQ, they came up with the idea of using food service delivery providers to bring agricultural goods to people’s homes.
Using the mobile application of Grab, specifically the GrabExpress Pabili delivery option, users can order farm produce being sold at the Negrense: Kadiwa store.
The delivery service is also available through other apps, such as the Maid in Bacolod, Juan Ride, Tinderoo, and Tapao.ph.
The list and prices of rice, vegetables, and other farm produce can also be viewed on the Negrense-Kadiwa official Facebook page.
Masculino said the partnership of the provincial government and the DA with Grab and other food delivery service providers is the first-of-its-kind in the country.
“We hope this can be replicated in Bacolod and other local government units. With our current situation, our people need fresh food like vegetables,” he added.
During the launch, Lacson also led the symbolic turnover of the food lane vehicle pass from the DA and identification card issued by the Capitol inter-agency task force to Grab rider Ramil Talavera.
Lacson thanked the province’s food delivery service partners for their cooperation.
“More important that even beyond ECQ, this will be a program that will become already normal to everybody – to use mobile app for food to be delivered. Let us do everything possible to make this successful,” he added.
Home delivery is available from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Meanwhile, walk-in customers can also visit the Negrense: Kadiwa store from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. and from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. (PNA)
