Policy Notes:
MBC joins PHINMA in a Policy Forum
on Achieving Food Security

On June 24, PHINMA Corporation and Makati Business Club held a policy forum with Stratbase ADR on “Achieving Food Security: Advancing Investments for Agricultural Sustainability”. The forum promoted collaborative discussions on cultivating a resilient and sustainable food security environment. MBC Executive Director Bobby Batungbacal talked about prioritizing investments and PPP collaborations on agricultural infrastructure. Danielle Del Rosario, PHINMA talked about the need for private sector investment in cold storage. Usec. Perez and Asec. De Mesa  talked about DA’s eight-point-plan and implementing targeted measures to improve cold storage and logistics. 

MBC is holding roundtable discussions in preparation for the Agriculture and Food Security Summit this September. We currently have 3 working groups on (1) Cooperatives, (2) Agri-Tech, and (3) Food Distribution/Logistics, all aiming to find pain points and identify how the private sector can help. If this sounds interesting to you, please reach out to Catch Ofilada (catch.ofilada@mbc.com.ph) or Adrian Asoy (adrian.asoy@mbc.com.ph) who are both leading the summit. 

Three key points from the forum are below: 

1. Inadequate supply chain infrastructure. Supply chain inefficiencies lead to higher prices and reduced access to commodities. Experts estimate that approximately 30% of food loss and wastage occurs throughout the supply chain significantly impacting food security, the economy, and sustainability efforts. An efficiently established supply chain enables even smallholder farmers or fishers to market their products to distant shores, where retailers and consumers can enjoy them.
2. Private sector can address infrastructure gaps in agriculture. Combining resources, expertise, and responsibilities between public and private sectors can help achieve common objectives in agriculture. Investments in modern irrigation systems, cold storage facilities/logistics, and postharvest systems are feasible and can be economical for all parties.
3. Support from the government. The Department of Agriculture has laid out the NINE (9) Strategies of the Four-year Plan to attain food security. The focus is on boosting agricultural production to ensure widespread access to affordable and nutritious food, while also cultivating the sector into a profitable industry through policies

Speakers:
Eduardo Sahagun, PHINMA Construction Materials Group
Victor Andres Manhit, Stratbase ADR Institute
Usec. Asis Perez, Department of Agriculture
Asec. Arnel V. De Mesa, Department of Agriculture
Bobby Batungbacal, Makati Business Club
Danielle Del Rosario, PHINMA Union Insulated Panel Corporation
Asec. Romeo Montenegro, Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA)
Anthony Dizon, Cold Chain Association of the Philippines