FRESH MILK RATION. The staff of the Antique Integrated Provincial Health Office staff pose with their fresh milk ration in this undated photo. The fresh milk distribution was an initiative of the Belison Multi-Purpose Cooperative in partnership with the National Dairy Authority to help front-liners as they combat Covid-19. (Photo courtesy of Antique IPHO)
SAN JOSE DE BUENAVISTA, Antique – Front-liners in this province get fresh dairy milk every week rationed for free by a multi-purpose cooperative in Belison town.
Dan Roel Sabug, in-charge of the milk donation at the Integrated Provincial Health Office (IPHO), said in an interview Thursday that the Belison Multi-Purpose Cooperative (MPC) has been a great help to them and to health workers of the Angel Salazar Memorial General Hospital, which is the provincial hospital in Antique.
“We are glad that we are receiving a ration of fresh milk,” he said.
The initiative was in partnership with the National Dairy Authority (NDA), which provided them a grant of PHP34,000, said Salvador Estaris, Belison MPC general manager, in a separate interview.
The fund augmented the capability of the cooperative that has already donated PHP12,000 worth of milk to front-liners.
Dairy farmers process milk using the equipment provided by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) under the Shared Service Facility in 2019.
“We have equipment such as holding tank, processing tank, cold storage, milking cans, generator, and pasteurizer from the DTI,” he said.
The fresh milk is sourced from the 10 heads of cattle (Holstein Sahiwal) that they breed.
The cooperative started to deliver fresh dairy milk to the IPHO last May 1 and every Wednesday thereafter.
He said that as of May 27 they had already delivered 1,005 pouches of milk to the IPHO. Each pouch contains 200 ml of fresh milk.
“Aside from the IPHO, the Belison MPC also delivers milk to the Belison Municipal Health Office, and to the Antique Medical Center, which is a private hospital, in San Jose de Buenavista,” he said.
He said that they also gave milk to the front-liners manning the checkpoint in Belison.
The Belison MPC has engaged in dairy production supposedly to supply fresh milk to malnourished school children in public schools.
“We have already an agreement with the Department of Education but because of the Coronavirus 2019 (Covid-19) it might be postponed until next year,” he said. (PNA)
