Thursday, July 24, 2008 Minfruit to link growers, buyers in market encounter By Joy Romares-Sevilla
TO ADDRESS gaps between fruit growers and buyers in Mindanao, the Mindanao Fruit Industry Development (Minfruit) Council is organizing a two-day event that will be highlighted by market matching on July 31 to August 1 at the Green Heights Convention and Business Center, on Diversion Road in Buhangin, Davao City.
Lawyer Antonio B. Partoza Jr., president of the Minfruit Council, said in Wednesday's edition of the Club 888 press forum that the event dubbed as the 1st Minfruit Market Encounter, aims to provide buyers a venue to present their fruit requirements in terms of volume and quality and to provide farmers different market options for their products.
"This activity also aims to fill the supply-demand information gap between buyers and suppliers," Partoza said.
Identifying gaps, Partoza said the main problem of the fruit growers in Mindanao the market.
"Farmers especially the small ones, who are in the middle of the island, have no access to processors. The main processors are based in Davao, and we do not have other processors in other areas in Mindanao," Partoza said.
He further said that with the initiation of the market encounter, direct links between the farmers and the buyers, particularly exporters will be established.
"Maliit ang kinikita ng mga farmers because of the middlemen and this is one of their biggest problem. Our purpose is to reduce the middlemen in the industry, if we cannot eliminate them," Partoza said.
Partoza added that the council has no financial capacity to help the farmers in the fruit industry. But he was quick to add the council can help farmers by initiating such undertakings.
"This is the only way we can help them, ang pagharapin ang farmers at buyers, we have no financial capacity," he said.
Partoza said the event will be held in collaboration with the Growth with Equity in Mindanao Program (GEM-USAid), with the city government of Davao, and the Department of Agriculture.
