ILOILO CITY – The designated food terminal for Panay Island in San Miguel town, Iloilo province has embraced e-commerce.

THE San Miguel Public Market and Farmers Bagsakan Complex in San Miguel town, Iloilo province. (Tara Yap)
The digital portal for the San Miguel Public Market and Farmers Bagsakan Complex was launched on Wednesday, May 1, which also marked the formal reopening of day-to-day operations after the pandemic.
Mayor Marina Luz Gorriceta said the mobile platform known as Bagsakan app aims to address the challenges and gaps in marketing and selling agricultural products of those belonging to the Bayanihan Tipon Center (BTC) Network which was established in 2018 with a grant from Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA).
There are BTC in the four provinces of Panay Island, in the towns of Alimodian, Lambunao, San Miguel, and Tubungan in Iloilo; Jamindan and Tapaz in Capiz province; Libacao and Madalag in Aklan province, and Patnongon, Sebaste, and Tobias Fornier in Antique province.
The Bagsakan app can be used by both sellers and their potential customers, including restaurants, hospitals, and key businesses in Iloilo City, the regional capital of Western Visayas.
There are three cooperatives at the forefront of business services in the Bagsakan Complex. These cooperatives trade rice, grains, fruits, vegetables, livestock, and poultry.
Three cooperatives focusing on rice and grains, fruits and vegetables, and livestock meat and poultry have been tasked to manage the hub.
Iloilo Rep. Michael Gorriceta said agricultural products at Bagsakan Complex can be sold at cheaper prices as the system removes middlemen.