Press Release
November 16, 2018

Statement of Sen. Francis Pangilinan on DPWH order to jail, fine farmers drying palay on national roads
Hindi magbibilad ng palay kung sapat ang drying facilities: Kiko

The DPWH order to arrest and fine farmers for drying their palay on national roads is not only insulting, it also reflects its ignorance on how our farmers are doing.

If there were public mechanical drying systems, especially those that harness solar energy, our farmers would not dry their palay on cemented roads. Because they know, this is not efficient, that many of their palay get wasted.

The government knows this as well. According to its 2010 study, 5.9% of the harvested palay is wasted because of inefficient drying methods. If our rice production for the year is about 13 million metric tons (a Food and Agriculture Organization estimate), that is equivalent to 767,000 metric tons of palay! If all of that is milled properly without waste, that is equivalent to 767 million kilos of rice. With 100 million Filipinos, each would have more than 7 kilos of rice.

Where are the post-harvest facilities the government promised? Don't pick on the small folk, provide solutions for their needs, not only for them but also for all of us they feed.

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