BFAR sells cheap fish in coops, donates to community pantries

Amid the left and right emergence of community pantries in various places, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) has come up with a way to help with the initiative.

Those who want to donate fresh fish to community pantries can buy them at BFAR under the Oplan Isda program at a cheaper price.

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Department of Agriculture (DA) Undersecretary Cheryl Natividad-Caballero told TeleRadyo that the price of fish under Oplan Isda is not far from the farm gate price.

“Meron pong kooperatiba na nakikipag-ugnayan sa BFAR dahil sila po ang namimili in bulk and that is going to be distributed to the sellers and even to those donor na gustong magbigay sa community pantry,” said Caballero.

BFAR is an office under the DA.

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These include bangus, which is P110 to P120 per kilo, and tilapia, which is P85 to P90 per kilo, among the fish that can be bought at BFAR.

The fish are said to come from different regions, but most are from Zamboanga City.

BFAR sells cheap fish in coops, donates to community pantries

Fish is cheaper because, from the producers, the supply goes directly to the sellers.

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“Itong ginagawa sa Oplan Isda it’s a business-to-business linkages, producers are linked diretso sa ating mga nagtitinda. Ngayon na-implement natin ‘yung Oplan Isda for test run sa Valenzuela at Quezon City,” said Cabellero.

Those who want to do business can also buy from Oplan Isda.

BFAR’s social media pages can be visited for more details.

Meanwhile, The Department of Agriculture () assured the public on Tuesday that the fish supply and prices are stable in the  (Metro Manila, Bulacan, Rizal, Cavite, and Laguna).

“This favorable condition was due to the peak season in the country’s major fishing grounds, as well as from the DA’s efforts to ensure food security amid the pandemic,” Agriculture Secretary William Dar said in a statement.

“During the second week of the month, from April 8 to 14, total volume of marine fish catch unloaded at the Navotas Fish Port Complex amounted to 3,760 metric tons (MT), 200 MT more than the previous week,” Dar said.