New market for farm produce

By Memo Hauke
A MARKET has been opened in Port Moresby to sell fresh produce airlifted by helicopter from a remote area of Goilala, Central.
Villagers in the area have been benefitting greatly from what they call the “haus door chopper” which belongs to Airborne Logistics.
It brings back their garden produce to be sold in Port Moresby.
Goilala MP William Samb said during the opening of the market yesterday at 7-Mile near Jackson airport it was a good initiative.
It will be opened seven days a week.
“This is a very good initiative and I commend the management of Airborne Logistics for looking beyond aviation and venturing into buying and selling of local produce and helping my people,” Samb said.
“If my people travel from their village all the way to Port Moresby, it will take them a day. And their farm produce will wither along the way.
“With the chopper, the quality is still fresh in the morning when it is brought back to Port Moresby.
“The people are earning something for themselves.”
He urged restaurants and hotels to buy the fresh farm produce from the market.
“You will find all the vegetables fresh,” Samb said.
Market owner Marik-Ka Allgood said she was excited about the market.
“When we carry passengers to their villages in Goilala, Rigo or Koari, we drop them off and travel back to Port Moresby empty,” she said. “So we decided to bring back fresh produce.
“We made arrangements with Samb and local level government people on the ground and started from there.
“We buy their produce at the village and brought them here to sell.
“Our vegetable garden foods are brought in everyday. If hotels or restaurants want the produce, we can make arrangements.
“We have three freezers to store our produce.
“Our produce are weighed and bought – 5kg is K30 and 10kg is K60. Airborne Logistics provides support to our customers to ensure their projects in Papua New Guinea run smoothly from concept to completion.”
Their operations in PNG in 2011. The company now operates three helicopters, two trucks and has a 37 staff.
They provide passenger service and cargo charter, aero medical evacuation, services to remote and isolate communities. Doug Allgood, operations manager for Airborne Logistics PNG, said “when we benefit, you also benefit. And we all are happy”.
At present, three regions, and 39 villages receive door to door service and allows transport of approximately 5 tons of produce to Port Moresby.