The Department of Agriculture (DA) is preparing a major farm-to-market road (FMR) rollout in Mindanao next year, beginning with a planned P2-billion road in Sultan Kudarat to open more farmland.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel Jr. said Thursday the agency has begun mapping corridors to link isolated production zones to commercial hubs after regaining full control of the FMR program. 

Build road to open up new farmlands

“We want to put P2 billion into a single road in Sultan Kudarat that will open up 32,000 to 35,000 hectares of new farmland,” Tiu Laurel said. “These areas aren’t being used now because there’s simply no road.”

He said the potential extends beyond Sultan Kudarat, noting that Liguasan Marsh could unlock as much as 300,000 hectares once road networks are established.

The DA plans to roll out post-harvest facilities under the World Bank–funded Philippine Rural Development Project, including cold storage units, dryers, silos, and logistics connections to ports and emerging agri-ports — facilities Tiu Laurel said are essential to cut production costs and raise farmer incomes.

Dedicated FMR unit

The agency has also formed a dedicated FMR unit and is setting up a transparency system with time-lapse cameras, a farm-to-market portal, and memorandums of understanding with farmer cooperatives to help monitor projects. 

“It’s not rocket science to build a farm-to-market road. But we need people’s help to monitor those projects. Technology will also help,” he said.