THE Department of Agriculture (DA) said Cebu province, Maguindanao, and Sulu were the sites chosen to launch the KADIWA store network in the Visayas and Mindanao.
“By September we will be opening KADIWA stores in Visayas and Mindanao. We’re targeting Cebu, Maguindanao and Sulu,” Agriculture Assistant Secretary and Spokesman Arnel V. de Mesa said in a briefing on Thursday.
The DA has said it hopes to open about 60 KADIWA stores in September.
Government-subsidized KADIWA stores offer low-cost produce to the public, while allowing farmers to sell directly to consumers by doing away with the middleman stages of the supply chain.
Mr. De Mesa added that the KADIWA locations will offer rice at P29 per kilogram to vulnerable segments of society, with the general public also free to buy subsidized rice at other prices.
“The P29 rice locations have NFA (National Food Authority) warehouses near their sites,” he said.
Mr. De Mesa said that operating days for the stores will be Thursday to Saturday, in line with other locations.
The DA said it aims to open a network of 1,500 KADIWA outlets nationwide. — Adrian H. Halili