CLARK FREEPORT — A new KADIWA ng Pangulo center opened Monday at the Clark Special Economic Zone, expanding the Department of Agriculture’s (DA) initiative to make food more affordable and accessible to minimum wage earners and other beneficiaries through President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s flagship program, Benteng Bigas, Meron Na!

Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel Jr. led the launch, calling it “a significant day for our collective mission” to strengthen food and nutrition security and extend direct government support to workers and vulnerable communities.

The KADIWA hub, together with the P20-per-kilo rice program, will prioritize low-salaried workers identified by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and the Clark Development Corp. (CDC) among the freeport’s 151,000 workers, making it a key intervention in one of the country’s fastest-growing economic zones.

Tiu Laurel also highlighted the turnover of CDC’s state-of-the-art tissue culture laboratory to the DA. He said the facility will enhance the agency’s research capability, improve the quality of planting materials, and support sustainable food production. “It will directly support our efforts toward sustainable sourcing, enhanced productivity, and agricultural modernization,” he added.

The centerpiece of the launch for Clark workers was the rollout of P20-per-kilo rice purchased by the National Food Authority from local farmers. The program aims to ease food costs while providing stable market support to rice growers.

“With approximately 151,000 employees in CDC, where around 50 percent are minimum-wage earners endorsed by DOLE, this initiative brings essential and affordable food directly to the workforce that keeps this economic hub moving,” Tiu Laurel said.

Joining him at the event were CDC chairman Atty. Edgardo Pamintuan, CDC president and chief executive officer Atty. Agnes VST Devanadera, DA Assistant Secretary Genevieve Guevarra, DOLE Regional Director 3 Geraldine Panlilio, and DA Regional Director 3 Eduardo Lapuz.

Since its launch in May, the Benteng Bigas, Meron Na! program has expanded to 423 sites across 81 provinces, delivering subsidized, locally produced rice to vulnerable groups including senior citizens, persons with disabilities, minimum-wage workers, farmers, fisherfolk, and low-income families. The program is supported by the DA, Food Terminal Inc., and the NFA, with oversight by the DA’s Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Service.

The DA is also strengthening its P20 Benteng Bigas Masterlist Registry System, now with 35,014 registered beneficiaries, to ensure transparent and orderly distribution of subsidized rice to around 15 million households as early as 2026. The inclusion of Clark further broadens the registry through continued coordination with DOLE and CDC.