By KIMBERLIE OLMAYA NGABIT QUITASOL
www.nordis.net

LA TRINIDAD, Benguet—The price of temperate vegetables may have increased a few pesos due to the onslaught of super typhoon Juan this week but Benguet farmers, traders and vegetable vendors are not happy about this development.

Elmer Dangsian, an Atok farmer and vegetable trader said the slight increase in prices on temperate vegetables is a welcome development. However, he stressed that the sales is not that well right now.

“Uray nu ngimina awan met gumatang, isu nga lugi kami latta. Nadadael pay diay nabati idiay garden a sumaruno a makorta. Kasano kami pay a bumawi ngay? ” (Though prices go up no one will buy, so we lose just the same, our next harvest for todays market has been destroyed by the typhoon. How are we to cope with the loss?) Dangsian lamented.

Dangsian also shared that his nine-year old son is in the hospital recuperating from a fractured leg. He said his son was hit by a falling tree during the typhoon while on his way to the bathroom. He explained that their bathroom is adjacent the house.

“Haan tupay a nakurangan dagitoy sayote ket itattayak pay lang agsapa,” (Nobody has bought any of my sayote and I have been here so early) an old lady trader who requested not to be named said pointing to piles of sayote fruits beside her. She said almost all vegetable traders are facing the same crisis at the moment.

Rose Saguin, a vegetable vendor shared Dangsian’s sentiments. She explained that the vegetables being sold at the moment are not the best quality. “Pangit ti nateng itatta ta nabagyo isu nga awan unay ti gumatang santo pay lang ngimina,” (The vegetables are not of good quality because of the typhoon that is why only a few buy them and prices had to rise.) she stressed.

Meanwhile, Winston Chikay of the Task Force 10-2010 projected that prices of vegetables would drop in the coming days. He explained that the current price increase was to a decrease in supply during the typhoon as vegetable delivery trucks were stuck at the road cuts. But after the road blocks are repaired the supply will increase.

“The flooding in of supply today would result to a decrease in prices of vegetables in the coming days,” he said.

Chikay added there were over a hundred delivery trucks waiting to dispatch their vegetables yesterday, October 22. He said these were the trucks stranded at Halsema Highway during the typhoon. He agreed that traders are now having a problem disposing of their vegetables.

Task Force 10-2010 is assigned by the municipal government to oversee the day to day operations of the trading post and public market. # nordis.net