Senator Cynthia Villar commended the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and the Philippine Carabao Center (PCC) for signing an agreement that will provide milk to school children and at the same time provide livelihood to poor dairy farmers.
During the hearing on Senate Bill 144 or the Philippine Native Animal Development Act last Wednesday, PCC Exec. Dir. Arnel del Barrio, informed Villar that on November 22, he signed an agreement with DSWD Sec. Judy Taguiwalo on the Pilot Nutrition and Interventions through a Milk Supplementation Program under the Supplementary Feeding Program (SFP) and Sustainable Livelihood Program (SLP).
Under the agreement, some 10,000 children in pilot areas namely, Aliaga, Nueva Ecija; Talibon, Bohol; Damulog, Bukidnon; San Fernando, Bukidnon; and Maramag, Bukidnon will be given 200 ml of milk every day for the duration of 120 days from November 2016 to May 2017. Under the program, 2,019 liters of milk per day will be purchased from poor or small holder dairy farmers in the communities.
Villar has expressed disapproval over the dismal output of the dairy industry which stands at 1 percent of the demand. She suggested tying up the government’s Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) with a production component to help improve the agriculture sector.