It’s no secret that while Farm-to-market roads (FMRs), one of the main projects of the Department of Agriculture – Philippine Rural Development Project (DA-PRDP), directly provide point-to-point accessibility to farmers and the market, one of its major effects that is lost in the conversation is the overall transformation of its surrounding areas for the better.

One such FMR subproject established in San Luis, Batangas, not only provides farmers immediate access to respective markets, but its overall road influence area goes beyond its start and end destination.

Two barangays, Calumpang East and Calumpang West, benefitted directly, while another barangay, Manggahan, felt the positive effects of the PhP20.93 million FMR subproject.

The addition of the San Luis FMR, the second subproject to be completed in Batangas in 2020, provided instant wonders to farmers, and the surrounding communities, as demand for agriculture continues to rise.

Agricultural products such as coconut, sugarcane, and lowland vegetables grown in these barangays can now reach the market in less time than before. It also allows the farmers to have better access in their farms to bring their inputs, especially during rainy season.

“Malaki ang pangangailangan ngayon ng ating bansa na makarating agad sa ating mga consumer ang mga produktong inaani ng ating mga magsasaka. Isa ang kalsadang ito sa mga tumutulong na mapabilis ito,” San Luis Municipal Agriculturist Rinkoh Hernandez said.

 Likewise, another community in the area, Barangay San Antonio, greatly benefitted from the 1.59-kilometer FMR. What once was a barangay that had to rely on roads from neighboring towns just to get to the San Luis town center, now has a better and faster road to use.

The positive effects of the said FMR surpassed its expectations, and to build on this success, additional access roads are currently being constructed. One example of this is the Calumpang East to Manggahan access road, funded through the Assistance to Municipalities Program of the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG).

“Ito namang kalsadang ito ay nakasunod sa mga specification ng paggawa ng kalsada ng PRDP. Good quality kasi ang FMR ng PRDP, at ayaw naming mabago pa ang quality ng mga idurugtong na kalsada,” San Luis Project Engineer Liezl Cadacio said, who is also the current Disaster Risk and Reduction Management Officer of the municipality. 

 With the DA-PRDP’s FMR and additional access roads, the transportation cost for commodities and the travel time’s length has both gone down that not only benefitted the immediate residents of the beneficiary barangays but also the traders and visitors coming from surrounding areas. # (Lawrence Albert Bariring and Iconn Mel Cayabyab, DA-PRDP CALABARZON RPCO InfoACE Unit and DA-PRDP NPCO InfoACE Unit) 

Farmers can now bring farm inputs and products using motorized vehicles.

Farm produce can be transported faster and cheaper now with this completed farm-to-market road.

A section of the completed Calumpang East – Calumpang West farm-to-market road in San Luis, Batangas.