DA CALABARZON issues food lane passes for agri-fishery products deliveries
CALAMBA CITY, Laguna, March 31 (PIA) –The Department of Agriculture (DA) Region IV-CALABARZON has issued 2,643 food lane passes and stickers as of March 29, 2020 in line with the Food Resiliency Protocol it crafted to make sure the continuous movement of agri and fishery products despite the implementation of enhanced community quarantine in Luzon to contain the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID)-19.
The DA formulated the protocol to ensure that every Filipino will have accessible and affordable foods on their tables. It also allows producers of agricultural and fishery products and all agricultural supply chain segments to continue their operations.
Accredited farmers, fishers, traders, haulers, and other entrepreneurs were issued with passes to make sure the delivery of agri-fishery products will be unhampered to major demand centers like Metro Manila.
The Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Division (AMAD) with support from the Agricultural Program Coordinating Offices (APCOs) in all five provinces of CALABARZON oversees the enforcement of the Protocol. Likewise, various local government units through their agriculture and veterinary offices provide assistance to their constituents.
To be accredited, the applicants need to submit the food lane accreditation application form, food lane reference form, and statement of commitment. Additional documents like business permit, official receipt of registration, certificate of registration as well as handler’s license and accreditation of transport carrier from the Bureau of Animal Industry or accreditation of meat transport vehicle from the National Meat Inspection Service are also needed.
There are two ways in which agri-entrepreneurs can be accredited and received their food pass: personal submission or online. The applicants can submit their documents to DA CALABARZON AMAD office in Diliman, Quezon City or for those in provinces, to the respective official addresses of their APCOs. Meanwhile, for online, applicants only need to submit the scanned copies of the requirements to amad_rfu4a@yahoo.com. The applicants should submit requirements for every delivery vehicle they want to be accredited. Once processed and approved, the applicants will be advised to go to APCO of their province to get the food pass.
“Maraming salamat po [at] lumabas na po [ang] application namin. Sobrang bilis at alwan po ng aming pagbabyahe ngayon. Napakadali na po ng aming pagde-deliver sa Manila. Salamat din po sa pagtulong n’yo sa amin na mga magsasaka. Kayo po ang aming kaagapay at kasama para makamit namin ang tagumpay,” Bob Cuasay of Batangas said.
(We are very thankful that we already received our passes. It helps smoothly deliver our products to Manila. Thank you also for helping us, farmers, as your office support us to achieve success.)
Sheryl Mirchandani of Makati City also agreed. She already received her food lane pass. She shared, “I know you’re swamped with concern and I salute your department for your quick response. Let’s just help one another. My company is trying our best as well to serve the Filipinos. Have a nice day.”
The drivers need to present the food pass accreditation, in addition to the general requirements during normal deliveries, to checkpoints. If they were refused to access, they can report it on DA CALABARZON official Facebook page (www.facebook.com/DA4CALABARZON) or answer the food lane pass survey form (www.tiny.cc/DACLBRZN-FOODLANE).
For more information regarding the food pass project, applicants may contact Ms. Editha M. Salvosa, AMAD Chief, through amad_rfu4a@yahoo.com or 0919 849 8163. (CPG, PIA-4A/DA CALABARZON)
source https://pia.gov.ph/news/articles/1037544