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BY JULIO P. YAP JR.
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Friday, June 16, 2017
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AN improved livelihood project has empowered many housewives to become productive organic farmers.
The initiative transformed the women to become farmer-cooperators under the “Gender-responsive organic vegetable production livelihood enterprise for low-income communities of Los Baños, Laguna.”
It is spearheaded by the Gender and Development (GAD) Committee of the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development of the Department of Science and Technology (PCAARRD-DOST).
The project, which benefited 123 farmer-cooperators from Barangays Bagong Silang, Timugan, Putho-Tuntungin, Bambang, Bayog, Malinta, and Mayondon, was conducted in collaboration with the local government unit (LGU) of Los Baños.
Located at the foot of the Mount Makiling, Barangay Bagong Silang has the most farmer-cooperators at 46 percent, and the highest number of women cooperators who participated in the project.
Annabelle delos Reyes, one of the women farmer-cooperators of Barangay Bagong Silang, has converted hours of domestic work to farm and community work that provided her additional income and food for the family.
This setup allowed both Delos Reyes and her husband to earn from the vegetable project, and at the same time share in domestic chores.
Before the project started, most of the farmer-cooperators had little or no knowledge on how to produce organically grown vegetables.
Benny Badillo, another farmer-cooperator from the barangay, had previously depended on young and mature coconuts for livelihood until cocolisap and typhoons ruined their coconut palms.
This was also the experience of Teresa Gayas, who depended on their fruit trees, which unfortunately were always damaged by pests.
The project imparted know-how and skills on organic vegetable production to farmer-cooperators through a series of training sessions that included seed production, organic fertilizer production, vermicomposting, postharvest handling, marketing, farm record keeping/documentation, mushroom production, agripreneurship, leadership training, and gender sensitivity training workshop.
Cross-visits to other farms also inspired the farmer-cooperators with their communal and individual farms.
The farmer-cooperators also learned about edible landscaping and urban gardening using plastic bottles and other recyclable materials to grow their plants in a limited space.
They were also introduced to integrated farming system, which they can use when they decide to do business.
Currently, the farmers in Barangay Bagong Silang produce bitter gourd, lettuce, tomato, okra, pechay, mustard, eggplant, sitao, and peanut, among others.
They market their products at the Los Baños Friday organic market and at Herb Republic restaurant on Mondays and Wednesdays.
They also market their produce at the Organic Agri Fair of the University of the Philippines Open University in Los Baños every last Friday and Saturday of the month.
Aside from fresh produce, they also learned how to develop processed food products from their harvest like atsara, suman, burong mustasa, pickled garlic, and spiced vinegar, among others.
Barangay Bagong Silang has been benefiting from the project, through the profit they are earning from their sales.
To be able to strengthen and sustain the production and marketing activities of organic vegetables, an association was formed among the farmer-cooperators.
The association was named Los Baños Association of Organic Fruit and Vegetable Growers. (jaypeeyap@ymail.com/PN)
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