The Department of Agriculture is widening the reach of its P20-per-kilo rice program while strengthening food distribution in Mindanao with the opening of new KADIWA Bagsakan Centers in Davao de Oro and Davao del Norte.

During a ceremony on March 10 in Maco, Davao de Oro, the DA inaugurated a Bagsakan Center in Barangay Elizalde aimed at improving the consolidation and marketing of agricultural products in the province. The facility is part of the government’s effort to ensure affordable food and support local farmers.

The initiative also supports the administration’s food security program, which includes expanding access to subsidized rice through the “Benteng Bigas, Meron Na!” initiative distributed through KADIWA outlets and other government-backed channels.

Agriculture Assistant Secretary for Agribusiness, Marketing and Consumer Affairs and KADIWA ng Pangulo Program head Atty. Genevieve E. Velicaria-Guevarra said the program comes at a crucial time for food supply stability.

“This program is truly timely. Amid tensions in the Middle East that may affect global food supply and food prices, it is important to ensure that every Filipino family has sufficient and affordable rice,” Velicaria-Guevarra said in Filipino.

The Maco project, worth P6.8 million, includes improved storage facilities and a hauling truck to support the movement and distribution of farm goods. More than 500 farmers from 12 associations and cooperatives in the Masara line barangays are expected to benefit from the facility.

Following the turnover in Maco, the DA also handed over a P5-million KADIWA Bagsakan Center project to the municipal government of Carmen, Davao del Norte. The project includes a KADIWA store and a transport vehicle to help move agricultural products from farms to local markets.

The Carmen facility is expected to support 24 farmers’ cooperatives and associations with around 2,926 producer-beneficiaries while strengthening direct farmer-to-consumer sales and lowering logistics costs.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said the government plans to expand the reach of the subsidized rice program this year.

“Our goal this year is to reach around 60 million Filipinos and give them access to affordable rice and other essential food through KADIWA and similar programs. This is part of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s vision of ensuring food security for every Filipino, especially at a time of global uncertainty affecting food supply and prices,” Tiu Laurel said.

The program prioritizes vulnerable groups such as senior citizens, persons with disabilities, solo parents, Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program beneficiaries, transport workers, minimum wage earners, farmers, fisherfolk and public school teachers identified by local government units.