Promote food processing science and technology for the people!
Calls of the food processing sector to develop a genuinely pro-people food system
1. Shift economic paradigm. Legislate policy framework based on preferential option for locally-produced goods. The government should invest in local food production and processing, building the foundation for a shift from an export-oriented and import-dependent economy to a self-reliant and self-sustaining economy.
2. Develop the agriculture sector. To ensure food security, the government should invest in the agriculture sector in order to lay the groundwork for rural development and industrialization.
3. Improve food processing to avoid food wastage. Because of the large food losses due to overproduction and underutilization of agricultural crops, we should utilize these products in the processing sector by coming up with products that can address the nutritional problem we have in the country.
4. Expand government support for local small-scale food processors. The Department of Science and Technology (DOST), as well as other government agencies, are willing to provide aid and services to stakeholders in the food processing sector, which must be maximized by the public, especially the MSMEs.
Increase the budget for programs and infrastructures for local food processing. Support local researchers, developers, and manufacturers of local food processing equipment and facilities. Ensure that funds can also be directly accessed by non-academe organizations. Make these programs accessible to small farmers.
Remove cumbersome requirements, streamline the process of accessing government programs and services on food processing, especially for small farmers.
5. Implement genuine agrarian reform and national industrialization. Land should be distributed for free to the peasantry. This would promote rural development and become the economic base for national industrialization.