M’LANG, Cotabato Province (PIA)—The Barangay Katipunan Farmers Association (BKFA) in M’lang recently received an enhanced processing center for value-added cassava chips production from the Department of Agrarian Reform.

The facility has a fund worth P250,000 under the Village Level Farm-focused Enterprise Development (VLFED) Project.

Evangeline Bueno, provincial agrarian reform program officer II, said the center aims to help the beneficiary group comply with the standards of the Food and Drug Administration to acquire a license to operate and acquire certifications to penetrate bigger markets.

"Our assistance will not stop here because we will intensify the provision of technical assistance, and help you in marketing your product to penetrate institutional markets," Bueno told the farmer group.

She also stated that the move to develop and enhance the products of the organization is in partnership with the Department of Trade and Industry and other government agencies.

Meanwhile, Bernandina Lacao, president of the association, expressed gratitude for the assistance given to them by the DAR.

During the height of the pandemic in 2020, the BKFA also became a recipient of the "PaSSOver: ARBold move for the Deliverance of our farmers from COVID 19 Pandemic,” the agency's response to Republic Act 11469 or the “Bayanihan to Heal as One Act.”

The association received cooking equipment such as grinder, stockpots, wok pan, steamer, and additional cassava stalks as planting materials to intensify their production. (With a report from DAR-Cotabato/PIA-XII)