The Department of Agriculture says local farmers have a significant opportunity to supply schools, hospitals and other public institutions, but increasing production will be key to meeting demand.
The message emerged during a panel discussion at the National Agriculture Expo, where the Department highlighted its Farm to Public Institution initiative, which aims to connect farmers with government institutions, schools and other service providers to create stable markets for locally grown produce.
During the discussion, Max Viro of Ambae Mbulu School shared the challenges the school faces in sourcing enough local food.
“This year, if I remember correctly, we were only able to order taro for the school twice. When farmers cannot supply us, the school relies on its own farm, where we grow manioc to supplement rice, which remains the staple food in most schools. We only received fish once this year. For vegetables, we first use produce from the school farm, but when that is not enough, we try to source from farmers. However, our school farm is small and cannot meet all our needs.”
He said the school often depends on its own farm to fill the gap when local farmers are unable to meet demand.
Director of Agriculture Antoine Ravo said the discussion demonstrated that there is strong demand for locally produced food and a valuable market waiting for farmers.
“There are many opportunities for farmers to supply schools, and that is one of the objectives of the Farm to Public Institution initiative. We want to link farmers directly with schools. Today we have heard that there is not enough beef, not enough fish, schools only received fish once, and taro was supplied only twice, which is still not enough. This shows there are real opportunities for farmers to supply schools, public institutions and even hospitals.”
He said the Farm to Public Institution programme is designed to strengthen partnerships between farmers and public institutions, creating reliable markets for local produce while improving access to fresh food.
