House budget panel OKs ‘disaster food banks’ in all provinces

FILE: Evacuation of residents living along K-6th St. and in Bernardo Compound in Quezon City on Sunday (Sept. 25, 2022) to prevent possible damage and loss of lives due to Super Typhoon Karding. (Photo: Robert Oswald P. Alfiler via Philippine News Agency/Facebook)

MANILA – The House Committee on Appropriations has approved the proposed measure seeking for the establishment of disaster food banks facilities in every province across the country, Dinagat Island Lone District Rep. Alan 1 B. Ecleo said on Monday.

Ecleo authored House Bill (HB) 5245, which was among the three bills consolidated and passed by the House Appropriations Committee.

The measure seeks to establish stockpiles that shall serve as a “central repository and supply reserve of food, water, medicines, vaccines, antidotes and other critical medical supplies in every municipality and city in the Philippines.”

It shall also be the repository for other essential goods such as but not limited to, portable power source, first aid kits, portable light source, clothing, tents and communication devices.

“Our province’s experience with Covid-19 and Typhoon Odette is an eye-opener to the reality experienced by geographically isolated provinces in times of crises and natural calamities, specifically concerning the accessibility and availability of food supply,” Ecleo said.

Under his proposed bill, Ecleo said no province will have to grapple with massive starvation and inadequate food resources “because of transportation delays or interruptions.”

The bill also provides that the items and materials shall be non-perishable or shall have a shelf life of at least two years for food items. It shall also help in boosting local agriculture and local economies of municipalities and cities by sourcing the food and other supplies from within the local government units (LGUs) themselves.

The Committee on Disaster Resilience, chaired by Ecleo, approved the Bill last December 2022.

“As we have always said, no province is safe from the destruction and devastation brought by weather-related events, especially in the context of our changing climate,” Ecleo said.

“We need to empower each LGU to be able to provide adequate food and supplies to affected households and communities, especially the impoverished,” he added.