Farming can be profitable

Farming is where the money is. This may be hard to believe in a country where farmers are mostly old and poor. Based on a 2017 survey of the Department of Agriculture (DA), the average age of farmers in the Philippines is 60 years old. And their average income is around P100,000 a year, according to the latest Family Income and Expenditure Survey, or just over P8,000 a month, which is well below the poverty line.

Farmers have to contend with rain and floods, then drought, loans they can hardly pay because of these seasonal trials, as well as low market prices for their produce.  It’s a hard life. No wonder farmers’ kids do not want to become farmers themselves and dream of other careers.

Yet there have been quite a few examples of farmers who proved that farming can be quite productive and profitable, some we even featured in this paper.

For instance, the March 06 edition of our Agriculture and Commodities section featured former seaman Melbert Fadrigo, who gave up his job to manage their family’s rice and corn farm in Antique. Through the Department of Agriculture and LandBank’s Agricultural Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (ACEF) Loan Program, he was able to improve his farm’s productivity through mechanized farming.

“At first glance, you think there’s little money in farming. But in time you realize that, with the right moves and equipment, you can really grow a profit. Why do you have to keep sailing abroad when what you earn there, you can also earn here, on land?” Fadrigo said.

Rosalie Ellasus, a college degree holder, held a corporate job and also worked abroad before she came back to try rice farming in Pangasinan. Eventually, she got to where she was earning almost half a million from her five hectare-rice land per cropping season. She now allows her farm to be used as a demonstration pilot for smallholder farmers to visit and learn from. She also serves as President of the Philippine Maize Federation and is a member of the Truth About Trade & Technology Global Farmer Network.

Fidel David gave up a high-paying job as an engineer in Saudi Arabia, went home and became a profitable farmer in his hometown in San Matias, Pampanga. He planted the traditional palay; cherry tomatoes, which he said are much in demand in Japan; watermelons for him to get harvests quickly, ahead of the seasonal and devastating rains; honeydew lemons and other fruits and vegetables—whatever would give him the best yield given the land, weather and season. He also put up a farmers’ cooperative and agricultural school to spread the gospel of responsible and organic farming. He has helped fellow farmers in Central Luzon acquire good farming techniques that they can use to be profitable themselves.

With the government’s all-out support, there could be many more of them—farmer-entrepreneurs who will help our country achieve food security. We certainly need them to serve as role models for the next generation of farmers, a generation that has so far has been missing.

For a country that relies heavily on the strength of its agricultural industry to boost its economy, the lack of interest among younger people in farming is a worrying trend.

Enrollment in agriculture courses have been dropping sharply over the years, despite many agriculture schools offering full scholarships just to entice enrollees. Even as thousands remain unemployed in the cities, why is it that difficult to encourage young people to take up farming in rural areas?

Again, mainly it’s because they have seen how hard their parents and grandparents have toiled the fields with little or nothing to show for it. Even government incentives to farmers such as subsidies, seeds and machinery have been unable to change their minds.

Also, the younger generation did not grow up in the golden age of Philippine agriculture, when the country led Asia in agriculture development and was a net agriculture exporter. Back then our Asian neighbors who wanted to learn the best farming techniques went to the University of the Philippines-Los Baños and other local agriculture schools. But the younger generations grew up in a Philippines that is today a net agriculture importer and the top rice importer in the world. Successful farmers like the ones we mention here have become the exception rather than the norm.

The government must do its part by having a program and a set of incentives to get not only more young people, but also businessmen, OFWs, retirees and others involved in farming. Agriculture must be seen as an entrepreneurial venture. We must encourage people to get into it in the same manner we encourage them to put up their own small businesses to make money.

Having a piece of land to work on isn’t enough. There must be an effective program that would give them a start in an agriculture business and help them maintain a sustainable model. The government must help them develop plans, get financing, and most importantly, markets for their produce. The national government should help farmers sell their produce in a set-up where they will earn more instead of the middlemen, something like the Veggie Drop Off, “a non-profit venture run by volunteers,” that helps Benguet farmers sell their produce directly to consumers. Vegetables and fruits from Benguet have been sold at such “drop-offs” last week in Luneta Manila and Quezon Memorial Circle.

The future of farming is in the hands of well-educated professionals who have a good grasp of agriculture and marketing techniques. They would be vital to ensuring our country’s food security in an era of increasing scarcity. May their tribe increase.

https://businessmirror.com.ph/2020/03/10/farming-can-be-profitable/