As the entire nation continues to combat the coronavirus pandemic, among the top priorities of every Filipino family is the security of their own food. With many jobs indefinitely suspended, Filipinos are looking for ways to serve their families with inexpensive but nutritious food. What better way is available than growing vegetables and fruits in the backyard?

The Department of Agriculture (DA), along with local government units, has been ensuring that food production in the country continues to flow amid the corona crisis. Where a self-sufficient and sustainable food source is concerned, home gardening is the best option.

There are many benefits that backyard gardening provides to families. Since the entire country is still in quarantine, people are discouraged from going out of the houses. Home gardening can be an effective form of exercise to all family members. Since everyone is at home, people have the time to plant and tend to a garden in the backyard. In fact, gardening is a great thing for children to learn and do with their parents. Not only will they learn how to grow food, they will also imbibe the values needed in gardening such as patience, care, and endurance.

Home gardening provides fresh and nutritious food while cutting a huge chunk off the expenditures of a family. This means, families can save up a lot in backyard gardening. Food from home gardening is guaranteed fresh since nutrient loss is prevented by skipping lengthy transports of these produce to the marketplace.

Home gardening is also a form of therapy especially amid the coronavirus pandemic. It provides a great way for families to learn amongst themselves how to grow vegetables. More than just the security of having your own food available in your backyard, home gardening also provides an opportunity for more positive outlooks. In this way, families have something positive to look forward to which is essential amid these trying times.

Local Government Units (LGUs) are also helping every family to ensure food sustainability by providing seeds so that more households can plant and grow their own source of food. This initiative has already been started in some municipalities in Eastern Visayas, where a distribution of seeds has been conducted to families to ensure that every household will have their own source of food for the table.

The Department of Agriculture assures that the government through its program "Ahon Lahat, Pagkaing Sapat” (ALPAS) COVID-19 will be mobilizing more ways to give various communities and LGUs more seeds to provide adequate, accessible and affordable food for every Filipino family. #RyanRequiezRodriguez