MANILA – The Department of Agriculture (DA) on Friday assured investments in the next agri-fishery generation as it supports the agribusiness ventures of young Filipinos.
In a statement, the DA said it assisted almost 3,000 youths, fortifying its actions to achieve the administration’s food security agenda.
“At least 2,955 young Filipinos have availed of the assistance and support for their agribusiness proposals under the Department of Agriculture’s (DA) Youth Farmers’ Challenge (YFC) in line with the Marcos administration’s food security agenda,” it said.
The DA, under the leadership of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., the concurrent agriculture chief, said the YFC entails support through incentives for food production-related enterprises.
“Under the administration of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., the government is banking on the innovativeness and out-of-the-box ideas of the young Filipinos to ensure food sustainability as well as the creation of opportunities in agribusiness across the country.
The assistance, however, is not limited to financial support as young farmers and entrepreneurs also may maximize business development services, credit and loan access.
“They are also extended credit access under the DA’s Agricultural Credit Policy Council's (ACPC) Kapital Access for Young Agripreneurs (KAYA) and Agri-Negosyo Loan Programs (ANLP), which they can use to sustain current operations and enhance production capacities,” the DA said.
For instance, an urban farming group Nama Microgreens, founded by science major Eldrin Lee, Skyrene Bacalso, and his brother Edriel, made the most out of the YFC program.
The Nama Microgreens received around PHP100,000 cash grants on the YFC provincial level, followed by PHP150,000 worth of grants on the regional level.
The urban farming program built a “sustainable food system” which then expanded until they were able to have their Central Kitchen.
“The young agri-preneurs also developed partnerships with famous chefs in the country and are now supplying microgreens to various restaurants and hotels like Makati Diamond Hotel and the Sequoia Hotel in Quezon City.,” the DA added.
Meanwhile, the YFC was initiated by the DA’s Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Service (DA-AMAS), where enterprise capital was mainly provided by the Office of Senator Imee Marcos. (PNA)
