Farmers have dumped tons of harvested carrots and cabbage in a vacant lot in Barangay Ambassador, Tublay, Benguet.

According to a farmer, Grail Polig, the vegetables dumped in the area came from other municipalities.

“Yung gulay na tinatapon dito, hindi po galing dito sa Tublay. Galing sa mountain, kabayan, sa ibang munisipyo pero yung dumadaan lang po dito kasi dito lang po kasi yung daanan nila,” she said

[“The vegetables dumped here are not from Tublay. They come from the mountains, kabayans, and other municipalities. They just pass through here because this is their route.”]

Tons of carrots and cabbage were allegedly discarded due to an oversupply and a lack of buyers. At the La Trinidad Vegetable Trading Post, large volumes of carrots are struggling to sell.

League of Associations at the La Trinidad Vegetable Trading Areas Incorporated Advisor II Lorna Menzi explained that more farmers planted carrots after suffering losses from cabbage crops.

“Malaking dagok sa kanila kasi nagkalugi-lugi sila sa repolyo. Ngayon, nagtanim ulit sila ng carrots para makabawi sana. Ganito na naman. Masyadong maraming nagtanim ng carrots,” she said.

[“It’s a heavy blow to them because they already lost money on cabbage. They planted carrots hoping to recover, but this happened again. Too many planted carrots.”]

High-grade carrots previously sold at P18 to P20 per kilogram. Prices have now plummeted by P5 per kilo. Hence, farmers are struggling to find buyers.

The association of La Trinidad Vegetable Traders noted that buyers often prefer higher-grade options, including imported carrots. Successive bad weather in Benguet has further damaged local crops.

Transportation is also a challenge for farmers due to landslides and road disruptions. Hence, farmers are often forced to take longer routes, incurring additional fuel costs.

With reports from Grace Doctolero