The Department of Agriculture (DA) has distributed 50 ginger plants to Quezon City’s urban farmers so that Metro Manila can have a source of affordable spice for cooking.

“Gingers are priced like meat or pork. When we grow these ginger seedlings, we don’t need to buy ginger elsewhere anymore,” said DA Undersecretary for High Value Crops Cheryl Marie Natividad-Caballero, during the distribution of the plant at Sunnyville Community Model Farm (SCMF), Quezon City.

“In urban agriculture, the focus of DA is to have production of vegetables that are usually high-priced in the market. These vegetables are frequently used for home cooking. We also want urban farmers to earn.”

Caballero expressed interest in the potential value-adding properties of ginger, noting that extracts from ginger leaves could be utilized for other products, such as in candle-making.

The distributed ginger seedlings were cultivated at the Nueva Vizcaya Experiment Research Station of DA-Regional Field Office II. Similar seedlings produced under the DA High Value Crops Development were distributed to farmers in Porac, Pampanga and urban farmers in Taguig City.

The SCMF functions as a training hub for Quezon City residents, teaching them how to transform vacant lots into urban gardens within their neighborhoods.