To peasants and fisherfolks, Marcos’ declaration to make “nutritious food” affordable to every Filipino is all but an empty promise. Not only has he done nothing, his neoliberal policies are worsening the state of hunger of food producers.

Filipino farmers and fisherfolks are among the more than 828 million people worldwide who suffered hunger in 2021, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. Despite the yearly promises of past governments to provide support to the agricultural sector and the nutrition programs, the Philippines remained on the FAO list of 63 countries with the largest number of people who are undernourished.

The state has provided no support amid rising costs of agricultural production. According to Amihan, the total cost planting rice during the last cycle was ₱53,000 in Nueva Ecija. This is due primarily to high prices of fertilizer readhing ₱16,400 for Urea and Triple 14. They said climate change-related disasters such as typhoons have aggravated the farmers’ situation.

Threats and intimidation against those who fight for their land rights worsen the peasants’ suffering. In almost all parts of the country, farmers are victims of red-tagging, illegal arrests and detention, extrajudicial killings and various forms of human rights violations. Many of these cases do not reach the media and town centers.