Agri-10 strengthens price monitoring measures for agri commodities in NorMin

 

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY — In its continuous effort to strengthen the monitoring and regulation of prices for basic agricultural commodities in the region, the Department of Agriculture – Regional Field Office 10 (DA-RFO 10), headed by Regional Executive Director Jose Apollo Y. Pacamalan, convened the Bantay Presyo Monitoring Team (BPMT) on January 17, here.

Spearheaded by the agency’s Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Division (AMAD), the forum was also attended by BPMT members from the DA-attached agencies, bureaus, and corporations including Bureau of Animal Industry(BAI) ,Bureau of Fishery and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI), Fetilizer and Pesticide Authority(FPA), National Dairy Authority (NDA), National Food Authority (NFA), and National Meat Inspection Service (NMIS).

Representatives from the Regional Agriculture and Fishery Council (RAFC), DA banner programs, and provincial operation centers from the five provinces of the region also attended said forum.

Under the Republic Act (R.A.) No. 7581, as amended by R.A. 10623 (Price Act), the DA is one of the implementing agencies tasked with monitoring, regulating, and stabilizing the prices of essential agricultural goods, especially during emergencies or instances of unreasonable price surges.

DA-10 AMAD Supervising Agriculturist Ferdinand C. Caraballe elaborated on the implementing rules and guidelines of the Price Act, emphasizing DA’s crucial role in ensuring agri-fishery products are fairly priced and accessible to consumers.

Meanwhile, DA-10 AMAD OIC-chief Mae Carmela G. Fabela highlighted Section 5 of the R.A. No. 12022 or the Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Act which mandates the DA’s Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Service (AMAS) and the Bureau of Agricultural Research (BAR) to establish and maintain a Daily Price Index (DPI).

The DPI is a system designed to monitor and publish or broadcast the prevailing retail prices of agri-fishery products across all regions of the country on a day-to-day basis.

As discussed, retail prices will be collected from major retail establishments in key cities of each region where covered commodities are sold in local markets.

To ensure transparency and accountability, it was agreed to publish the DPI on the official websites and social media platforms of the DA-RFOs on the same day as the monitoring is conducted.

While the guidelines for the DPI were introduced during the forum, Fabela noted that DA-10 AMAD is still set to receive the official implementing rules and regulations in order for them to establish the DPI.

As experts in the same subject, representatives from the Department of Trade and Industry 10 and the city’s Local Price Coordinating Council also shared valuable insights to ensure price stability, preventing market abuses, and protection of both producers and consumers.

As a way forward, members of the BPMT agreed to beef up price monitoring and regulation initiatives to foster a fair and equitable market environment across the region.# (EJLG)