The Department of Agriculture (DA) said the government plans to construct solar-powered cold storage facilities in Occidental Mindoro to soften the impact of the power crisis in the province.
Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel, Jr. said that they are collaborating with the Department of Finance (DOF) and the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to build five more cold storages in the area.
Occidental Mindoro has recently been experiencing 20-hour daily power outages, leading to a state of calamity in the region.
Tiu Laurel said the plan is to achieve a capacity of 1,400 metric tons with the construction of the additional cold storages, adding to the two existing ones located in San Jose and Magsaysay.
Tiu Laurel believes that solar-powered cold storage facilities would help to stabilize commodity prices and prevent pests and other climate interventions, such as extreme heat, like other postharvest facilities.
In addition to the construction of cold storage facilities, he said better irrigation systems and the construction of dams in San Jose and Magsaysay have been proposed to further aid the province.