BAGUIO CITY – With a modest herd and a bold idea, 24-year-old Lindsay Monique Galla of Pudtol, Apayao, now stands among the top six young agripreneurs in the Cordillera after earning a spot in the national leg of the Young Farmers Challenge (YFC) Start-Up Competition.
Held in Baguio City, the regional tilt gathered provincial standouts from the highlands with each armed with ₱80,000 seed capital, and vying for another shot of adrenaline: a ₱150,000 boost and a ticket to the national stage.
Galla’s entry is a goat production enterprise shaped by her own blend of grit and climate-conscious practices. She calls it her answer to both protein security and the warming planet.
“This is not just about improving our farms; it is about creating businesses that will sustain our local economy,” said Pearl Castillo, YFC Focal Person of the Office of Agricultural Services of Apayao. “I encourage our youth to embrace development projects, particularly those focused on agripreneurial activities. We are an agriculturally dependent province, and these programs offer immense potential for economic growth,” she added.
Her project now moves into a critical phase coaching and business-model fine-tuning under the Department of Agriculture’s (DA) Regional Field Office. This, before she faces the national jury.
The Young Farmers Challenge is a nationwide initiative of the DA in partnership with local government units that zeroes in on turning rural ambition into viable agribusiness. The entries span crops, livestock, food processing, agri-tech, and marketing, a proof that the agricultural value chain has more links than most imagine.
Galla and her fellow regional winners are refining their pitch as the national round nears not just for panelists, but for a future that demands bolder farmers and smarter food systems.
As Galla readies her project for the national spotlight, she carries with her the hopes of a province and the people who never stopped believing that the farm can be the future. By Diocen Tolentino
