BAUKO, Mountain Province – Bauko is one of the 22 municipalities of Mountain Province. It is a landlocked municipality with farming still as a major source of livelihood. Its cool climatic condition allows for the production of varied highland commodities such as cabbage, potato, bell pepper, carrots, and the like.
The verdant mountains and semi-flat and terraced terrains, clear waters flowing in the earthen waterways, and paved canals can be observed as you traverse the road going to Sitio Tamog-o, Monamon Norte in the municipality. Agricultural production continues to prosper and sustain the lives in the community.
During a field visit in the community, we met two farmers – Nila Dulagan and Myrna Matias- who exemplify the beauty of farming while also championing Good Agricultural Practices (GAP), one of the programs of the Department of Agriculture (DA), to ensure food safety and quality that is in support to the Food Safety Act of 2013.
Their smiles upon our arrival gave warmth to our hearts as we reminisced about their farming journey over a cup of brewed coffee and boiled camote. Born into farming families, Nila and Myrna have been immersed in farming since they were young.
Some farmers in the locality are still practicing chemical farming. This is evident with the signs of chemicals sprayed on the farms and the presence of sacks of chicken dung piled up in the corners.
Due to travel restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic, many farmers have shifted from producing assorted highland commodities to chayote production. According to Myrna, they cannot bring their products smoothly to the designated trading centers in La Trinidad, Benguet.
Hence, they shifted to chayote considering the availability of buyers and lesser maintenance needs. A buyer (trucker) goes personally to their community to consolidate chayote with buying price based on the daily price at the Benguet Agri-Pinoy Trading Center, one of the trading centers in La Trinidad municipality.
Through this, many farmers were able to cope with the effects of the pandemic and sustain their farming activities. Other crops such as the bell pepper and short-term crops are still being produced in the community.
Championing GAP in the community
Myrna is one of the early adopters of GAP in their barangay. She became interested when the GAP program was first introduced by the Cordillera office of the Department of Agriculture (DA-CAR) and the municipal government in their community in 2016. She admitted that the certification journey was challenging and there were lengthy requirements that must be met such as the establishment of comfort rooms, resting areas, composting areas, and packing areas, among others.
“Umay da piman agbisita, saan laeng nga mamingsan, ngem agkana-bisita da. Isu nga dakami met kunami nga ipapati mi met. Adda jay tiempo nga kasla sumadot ta saan nga namnamingsan nga inaramid ket nalpasen. Isunga nu ag-GAP ka ket masapul nayunam ti anus ya gaget, (They come and visit us, not once, but often. This encouraged us to persevere seeing how committed they are. But there are times that we feel disheartened because the process is not a one-thing activity. Hence, if we intend to apply for GAP, we should have more patience and diligence.),” Myrna expressed.
The DA-CAR together with the provincial and municipal governments assisted the GAP applicant farmers primarily through coaching, regular field visitations, and conduct of GAP-related trainings. These, accordingly, significantly helped her in complying with the requirements and achieving the GAP certification.
Similarly, Nila also showed interest in taking the course on sustainable agriculture through GAP. She is the first farmer to be certified as a GAP practitioner in their locality. With farming as their main source of living, she wanted to ensure that their products were safe for consumption and could become competitive in the market. She then devoted herself to attending trainings and activities called for the program.
“Naadalko din kinapintas di aglawlaw, naurnos din mausar. Nu sin garden uray nu abay di be-ey yan adi masusungsung din nai-bomba, (I learned how to maintain good surroundings, the materials are fixed and segregated. In the garden, even if it is near the house, we cannot smell the sprayed chemicals.),” said Nila while sharing the benefits of GAP.
Myrna added that through GAP, they learned new ways of maintaining their farms and keeping records through the series of trainings freely provided to them along with other farmers who are into GAP certification. Evidently, in terms of inputs, their chemical inputs were lessened, thereby, reducing their expenses every cropping season. With GAP, the destructive pests like worms were controlled, Nila added.
“Mayat ti GAP para ti salun-at, makan, at least ay din inmulam yan mayat ay kanem tan ammom nu sinuy inpeeymo (GAP is good for the health, for the food-at least you know how your products were produced.),” Myrna exclaimed.
They are continuously advocating and encouraging their fellow farmers to apply for GAP. Despite the extensive process, the benefit of practicing GAP is long-lasting and holistic not only for the consumers but the producers themselves and the environment. Myrna and Nila also offer their assistance for interested farmers especially when it comes to arranging their farms and complying with the requirements.
Working in a greenhouse
To further assist them in their farming activities, the DA-CAR through its High Value Crops Development Program provided Nila and Myrna with a twin-tunnel collapsible greenhouse. The greenhouses are used for the production of assorted high value crops, particularly lettuce and green ice.
These resilient farmers shared that with the greenhouse, they can produce assorted crops throughout the year, even during unwanted weather conditions. Their harvest is also promising compared to those grown in the open field that is at risk of calamities and extreme weather conditions.
In her sharing, Nila said that around 70% of her usual expense per cropping was lessened due to the minimized use of pesticides. Also, there are more harvests when it comes to GAP because there are more discarded harvests under the conventional setup. She estimated, based on experience, that there is an addition of at least half of the usual harvest to her total harvest in the greenhouse compared to conventional farming.
Their products are being marketed in Porta Vaga in Baguio City. Accordingly, their products are being tested for chemical inputs and the marketing management visits their community every year, except during the pandemic, to personally inspect their farms in adherence to organic farming.
Aside from the greenhouses, Nila and Myrna also received assorted vegetable seeds which they planted in their greenhouses. They are specifically grateful for the series of training that they participated in through the years because it provided them new knowledge and skills to better approach their farming activities.
Myrna and Nila express their gratitude to their municipal and provincial governments, and the DA-CAR for their continuous assistance to farmers and for engaging them in worthwhile programs such as the GAP.
“Dakkel nga pagyamananmi sin magay pap-eng na ay tultulongyu en dakami ay farmers, sin kanayon ay trainings ay iyaw-awisyu en dakami asin pag din dakdake ay interventions ay indawatyu (Our immense thanks to your unending support to us farmers, for always inviting us to a series of training and for providing us costly interventions.),” Nila expressed.
Ways Forward
At present, Myrna and Nila continue to cultivate a learning culture in their families, inculcating the importance of farming to their children who will one day inherit their farms. They involve their children in various farming activities such as recordkeeping, preparing official receipts, planting, harvesting, and packaging, among others. According to them, they wanted their children to be abreast of the good agricultural practices that they are currently applying. Most importantly, for their children to embrace farming even when they pursue their dreams outside of agriculture, they are still knowledgeable of how farming is done – a basic life skill that sustained many families through the years. By JBagrifino & AGBanganga