The Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) has allocated some 6,000 square meters of land to residents of Talavera town in Nueva Ecija in a bid to encourage them to develop the agricultural land into a communal vegetable farm.

Nueva Ecija Provincial Agrarian Reform Program Officer Eden Ponio said the communal vegetable farm is under the "Buhay sa Gulay" project which was implemented in collaboration with the Minabuyok Farmers Agriculture Cooperative and the local government unit (LGU) of Talavera.

"This is a self-help start-up livelihood project in which concerned government agencies and organizations come together, share resources, and provide an opportunity to ensure food security in the face of the pandemic by allowing urban farmers to grow and eat fresh, healthy vegetables while also providing them with a source of income," said Ponio.

He said green chili, tomatoes, and squash will be planted in the communal vegetable farm.

She said the project would provide a consistent supply of vegetables to the neighborhood and motivate other city dwellers to grow their yards and plant vegetables for their consumption.

"The project aims to promote the importance of high-value farming among agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) to encourage them to have an alternative source of income by planting and selling fresh vegetables," she said.

Part of the project is to provide interested farmers with starter kits worth over P40,000 that include green chili and tomato seedlings, fertilizers, pesticides, fungicides, and farm tool kits.

Based on the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) signed by the DAR and the local farmer's cooperative, DAR-Nueva Ecija will provide marketing assistance, interventions related to loan facilitation, and other financial services while the Minabuyok Farmers Agriculture Cooperative members will assist in the vegetable production training and all other related activities of "Buhay sa Gulay" program implementation.