As additional support to the fishing industry, he said DA will roll out starting next year the establishment of ice-making plants in parts of the country.
He said they have identified at least 47 areas near fishing grounds as beneficiaries.
Pinol moved for the purchase of the “food boats” in November last year and later pushed for an initial allocation of around P270 million.
He earlier said they are targeting to conduct the bidding process next year and deploy the vessels by mid-2020.
Pinol pushed for the acquisition of the “food boats” to partly address the high shipment cost for products coming from Mindanao that are bound for major markets like Metro Manila.
Tuna industry players here have been reeling over the high domestic shipping and freight costs, which was based on the provisions Republic Act 1937 or the Cabotage Law.
The Socsksargen Federation of Fishing and Allied Industries Inc. had passed a resolution requesting the government to rationalize the cabotage provisions and related issuances move for the reduction of shipping, freight and transportation costs to enhance the viability of domestic trading. (MindaNews)
