Villar scores ‘onion syndicate’

Senate President Pro Tempore Manny Villar bared yesterday the existence of an "onion syndicate" that controls the flow of onions into the market, thus driving up the price of onions sky high.

Villar said that certain unscrupulous traders take advantage of onion farmers, buying their produce at low prices, then storing the products and regulating their flow into the market.

A kilo of onions is reportedly purchased at P7 to as low as P4 by big-time middlemen. The cost of the produce at retail outlets is at around P50.

"The large discrepancy in farm and retail price shows that something is wrong and some traders are making a killing," said Villar.

The big-time middlemen, said Villar, chairman of the Senate committee on food and agriculture, leave farmers with no choice as they are already indebted to them for farm inputs, thus they are already contracted to sell their produce to them (traders/middlemen) at low pricies.

"This system definitely has to be changed. Our farmers are being abused by unscrupulous middlemen," said Villar. "I have received reports naming who the big-time middlemen are and of how they are taking advantage of our onion farmers," he added.

He pointed out that the situation underscores the need for government to provide assistance to small farmers so they would not be put at the mercy of middlemen.

Likewise, steps must also be taken to heighten the access of farmers to direct markets in order to increase their income. "I favor programs to teach our farmers how to be entrepreneurs," said Villar.

He stressed that instead of middlemen taking advantage of farmers and raking it in at their expense, farmers must be given the means to market their products.

"One of our long-term goals must be how to make farming profitable in order to improve the lives of those engaged in this sector," Villar said.