BATAAN First District Rep. Geraldine Roman is proposing a bill that will solve the low income of farmers. Roman wants to put up hubs of clustered farmer organizations that will directly sell to consumers, including resellers. “We are an agricultural country with a population of over 100 million of which about 10 million or 24 percent of the total national employment, are rice farmers who struggle to make less than P200 [about $4] day,” she said, citing facts drawn from studies. “It’s painful for a farmer to plant the seeds to feed everyone then have nothing to eat,” the lawmaker added. Roman said the farmers suffer from low income because of low farmgate price of palay (unmilled rice) and the high cost of rice production.

Source: Manila Times June 08, 2020 16:18 UTC