Villar boosts urban agri as tool for food security

Urban agriculture is a viable intervention to make poor households and communities healthier and more food sufficient, Sen. Cynthia A. Villar has said.

Villar, who is the chairperson of the Senate Committee on Agriculture and Food, notes how the spiraling prices of food and other commodities have made life more difficult for families in poor urban communities.

In urban communities where living spaces are cramped and land use is limited, Villar said households can practice urban gardening and plant vegetables in small pots and empty plastic containers to have their own vegetable gardens for their family's supply of nutritious greens.

The senator said urban vegetable gardening will not only address food sufficiency but will likewise promote health and wellness of families.

Backyard vegetable gardening will hit two birds with one stone - ensuring the supply of vegetables on your tables and providing the necessary nutritional supply to make your family healthy,’ Villar said.

Villar, who is the author of Senate Bill No. 141 or the Integrated Urban Agriculture Act of 2016, said today is the perfect time to institutionalize urban agriculture because of its benefits to poor urban households.

To encourage more households and communities to engage in urban agriculture, Villar partnered with Villar SIPAG (Social Institute for Poverty Alleviation and Governance) and Allied Botanical Corporation and launched the second 12-day urban vegetable gardening training program held at the Villar SIPAG farm school in Bacoor City, Cavite.

Sen. Cynthia Villar at Urban Farming launch. In support of her program on urban farming, Senator Cynthia A. Villar leads the launching of the second Urban Vegetable Farming 2018 at the Villar SIPAG Farm School in Bacoor City, Cavite. The senator, chairperson of the Senate Agriculture and Food committee, has been encouraging residents in communities to grow fruits and vegetables in their backyards and in any available space. She emphasizes that urban gardening is an effective tool for the poor urban communities to become healthier and more food sufficient.

Villar and representatives from Allied Botanical Garden also had a ceremonial transplanting of tomato seedlings during the launching of the training program.

The training was attended by 270 participants from Marikina, Quezon City, Pasig, Taguig, Muntinlupa, Pasay, Manila, Parañaque and Las Piñas in the National Capital Region, Bacoorand other areas in Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon.

The program consists of lectures and hands-on training on basic urban agriculture, seed preparation, plant propagation, sustainable cropping, garden management and proper harvesting.

“Let us all work together in addressing hunger, poor nutrition and food security in our country. Practice agriculture even in limited spaces in urban areas and you will soon become food sufficient,” Villar said.