City officials recently commended Rural Rising Philippines for its contributions in supporting distressed local farmers in the city and Benguet, particularly in promoting sustainable agriculture and advocating environmental conservation initiatives.
In a resolution authored by Councilors Rocky M. Aliping, Maximo Edwin, Jr., Betty Lourdes Tabanda and John Rhey Mananeng, local legislators stated that the group operates rescue buying stations in the city and Benguet, Nueva Vizcaya, particularly in Aritao and Gabaldon, Nueva Ecija and dispatches rescued produce through its three hubs in Metro Manila – Mandaluyong, Quezon City and Muntinlupa.
Further, it also manages the Camp Mingan Nature Park in Gabaldon, Nueva Ecija, an initiative aimed at protecting the endangered Philippine eagle and managing water and forest resources in the Sierra Madre mountain range.
The group is a young organization founded in April 2020 by Mr. and Ms. Ace and Andy Estrada in Baguio City and is a non-profit grassroots collective dedicated to helping distressed Filipino farmers recover and feed the nation with pride.
Operating in the city, the group enhances the economic viability of local agriculture by eliminating layers of middlemen between producers and consumers, promoting fair and sustainable market practices.
At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, in areas experiencing over production of fruits and vegetables, such as Baguio and Benguet, the group initiated ‘rescue buys’ to procure farmers’ produce, preventing waste and supporting them in critical need.
Moreover, it conducted ‘group buys’ to further assist the farmers by ensuring their produce reach consumers effectively.
The group reportedly paid Baguio and Benguet farmers fair prices for their produce and distributed the ‘rescued’ fruits and vegetables to its 45,000 members and 208,000 subscribers at wholesale rates where this approach created a mutually beneficial arrangement for both farmers and consumers, positioning farmers for long term prosperity and providing consumers with fresh, affordable produce, which they could share or use to establish small re-seller businesses.
The group envisions to become the largest community-supported agriculture organization globally, with the goal of empowering 100,000 farmers, one farmer, one community at a time, to achieve sustainability and financial independence by 2030. Through its pandemic era efforts, the group has demonstrated its commitment to the said vision by supporting farmers, promoting fair pricing, and ensuring access to fresh, affordable produce.
Copies of the approved resolution will be transmitted to the group for information, guidance, ready reference and further needed action. By Dexter A. See
