By Martin Sadongdong Almost two hectares of the Philippine Army's base at Camp Capinpin in Tanay, Rizal will be converted into farmland after soldiers turned to farming to prevent a looming food crisis due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19). Major General Arnulfo Marcelo B. Burgos Jr. (Rizal Police Provincial Office / MANILA BULLETIN) Major General Arnulfo Marcelo Burgos Jr., commander of 2nd Infantry Division (2ID) which has military jurisdiction over southern Tagalog, said the conversion of the Army camp to farmland aims to support the needs of the community and the people while an enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) is being implemented in Luzon. "The idle lands of vast military reservations which are to be developed will be put to good use while soldiers will perform their mandate to serve the people, this time in the field of food security," Burgos said. The military's initiative will be done in partnership with DV Boer International Farms Corporation, a commercial stud farm company. Under the partnership, the farms will provide technical assistance in livestock raising, crop production, and food processing to the soldiers. Meanwhile, volunteers from the community and paramilitary forces will be tapped to augment the manpower of private farms that will be converted into "quarantine farm camps." The quarantine farm camps are projected to produce 32 tons of farm-fresh food in eight to ten months. About 65 percent of the total food production will be donated to the needy "to serve as one of the local government's sources of relief for the constituents," according to Dexter Villamin, DV Boer Farms president and chief executive officer (CEO). Villamin stressed that food security should be ensured to prevent bigger problems such as hunger and civil disobedience from arising amid the enhanced community quarantine. "If the situation drags on, people will be hungry and the government will have to deal with another problem. We feel that it is our social responsibility to avert such problem not only by providing products to serve as food but also to give our people a means of living while most of the industries are on shut down," Villamin said. Aside from soldiers who will undergo farm training, around 50 civilian volunteers and members of the Civilian Armed Forces Geographical Unit (CAFGU) Active Auxillaries from Tanay town will also augment the manpower of MDT Farm, a seven-hectare agri-business farm located in Barangay Sampaloc, Tanay, Rizal. The additional manpower is seen to boost the private farm's production from its current inventory of almost 500 high-breed goats, more than 300 chickens, native swines, and imported turkeys. Burgos said the partnership will make the military camp self-sustaining while the soldiers will have a steady source of nutritious food for the duration of the enhanced community quarantine.