The Rural Alternative School of Pasca Supports Food Provision in Bogotá During COVID-19 Pandemic

Due to an outbreak of COVID-19 within the most important supply center in the country, the city of Bogotá has had several supply difficulties that have led to an increase in food prices. At the same time, crops in the countryside have been lost due to lack of marketing channels. In response to these problems, the Mayor's Office of Bogotá organized the Mobile Peasant Markets with the slogan “Whoever sows it is who sells it”. The Mobile Peasant Markets bring together peasant cooperatives from rural Bogotá, and the central region of the department, to offer their products through their website or through a special telephone line to place orders. This gives them the opportunity to sell seasonal products without intermediaries and at fair prices.

The COOMUPAS cooperative, a participant in the Rural Alternative School (ERA) of Pasca , carried out a pilot test of sales through this platform, and verified the advantages offered by these platforms. To date, the balance indicates 800 kilos of food sold and they are already preparing for the start of a third day of orders. These markets are shipped thanks to transport and delivery logistics managed by the ERA of Pasca. Diego Muñoz, an extension worker at the ERA in Pasca, says that "We are betting on this initiative growing. Due to many situations, we decided that the orders come directly from the ERA and are delivered to the buyers' homes in Bogotá, avoiding several loading and unloading of the merchandise. So our spirits are very good, despite the difficulties. Having started and having already had sales seems very good to us, and there has been satisfaction on the part of the clients, they have stated that they buy from us again, that prices and products are very good, so we are very happy".

With the Mobile Peasant Markets it is possible to guarantee disinfection protocols for agricultural products, offer security measures for home delivery and avoid crowds in supply centers. All these are measures to control the spread of the virus in the city, one of the most affected by the health emergency. Additionally, the COOMUPAS cooperative and the ERA of Pasca hope to integrate more peasant producers from the area where they currently work, to expand their crops and develop new projects that increase their economic income.

Find more information about this activity at: Mobile Peasant Markets – Who sows it is who sells it