**3.2 Identification of value chain characteristics pertaining to the relationships of participants from farmers to purchasers using farm to market analysis**

Farmers, middlemen/processors, and sellers make up the Taro VC in Partido, Camarines Sur. The sellers' prices are frequently cheaper than the middlemen's. The majority of farmers sold their produce to the intermediary since it was profitable and the crop is perishable. Fresh taro tubers decay in 2 to 3 weeks, therefore selling it at a lesser price but in bulk is preferable to selling it (to sellers) at a much higher price but in pieces. Unlike the farmer-to-intermediary value chain, where only the middleman determines the price, the seller-to-market value chain contains a number of variables that might influence Taro's price.
