CALAMBA CITY, Laguna (PIA) — The municipal government of Taytay in Rizal province has bought over 20,000 kilos of cabbage to help vegetable farmers in La Trinidad, Benguet who have been reeling from the drop in vegetable prices due to oversupply in the market.

Taytay Mayor Allan De Leon took to social media on January 6 to announce the move. The vegetables were distributed to the residents of Taytay.

"We decided to help the vegetable farmers in Benguet as they were experiencing an oversupply and were almost giving it away. So tomorrow, we will distribute the vegetables immediately," De Leon posted on his Facebook page.

According to a vegetable trader named Julie, the mayor bought a total of 20,000 kilos of cabbage and also covered the transportation costs worth P40,000 from the trading center in La Trinidad, Benguet to Taytay, Rizal.

"Early this morning, someone called me and I found out that the price of cabbage in Benguet is currently very low, so I paid for their transportation costs as well. What would I do with all these cabbages? Can I bring them here? We have cabbages and I also added corned beef," the mayor explained.

Taytay officials led the distribution of the vegetables which were paired with canned food to residents of Barangay San Isidro on Monday, January 8.

De Leon has received warm gratitude and commendation from his constituents for helping the farmers and traders in Benguet and for providing food to those in need.

"Kudos to our Local Chief Executive, Mayor Allan De Leon. Aside from helping the farmers, many of our countrymen, including our Rescue Taytay Command Center teams, were able to enjoy the very nutritious crops from Benguet," posted Taytay resident Poch Domingo on Facebook.

A report by Philippine Information Agency Cordillera clarified that there is no oversupply of highland vegetables in the region. The dumping and low-cost selling of vegetables were reportedly caused by lack of buyers, which led to abnormal trading activities. The Department of Agriculture in the Cordillera reported a 6.18 percent decline in cabbage production, while Chinese cabbage saw a slight increase of 1.10 percent compared to the previous years.

Prices and trading activities in the region are gradually returning to normal, the report concluded. (CO/PIA-4A)