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All these farmers needed was a helping hand(Philippine Daily Inquirer Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge)GUINDULMAN, BOHOLSTANfilco, Philippine Packing, Lapanday, AMS, Global Fruits, Delta Farms. What do these companies have in common? Hundreds of hectares planted to bananas and exports of the golden fruit. These firms are among the major players in the country, employing hundreds of workers. But theres a relatively new comerthe Guio-ang Multi-Purpose Cooperative Inc. in Guindulman, Bohol. Total area planted: 1.8 hectares. Total number of farmers: ten, each one tilling 1,000 sq. m. planted to bananas. Total number of workers: 17, of which 15 are involved in packing and 2 in purchasing. Type of banana exported: organic bongan, an indigenous and naturally grown variety characterized by its aromatic, yet sweet-sour taste. The largest reported shipment? 676 kg, and counting. Not much compared to the big boys, but quite an accomplishment for a bunch of farmers. Banana, mostly of the Cardava variety, ranks third among the food crops grown in Guindulman, where 330 ha are planted to it. There isnt a single barangay in the municipality where banana isnt grown. In terms of area cultivated and volume of production, the most predominant crop produced in the ARC is rice, which is largely rainfed. Minor crops aside from bananas are: Coconuts, peanuts, corn, root crops and a variety of fruits. The agrarian reform community (ARC) also known as Guio-ang, is about 90 km from the provincial capital city of Tagbilaran. One can reach the ARC by boarding jeepneys that ply the highways and municipal roads or by taking single motorcycles known as habal-haba to go to the mountainous areas. There are scarcely any major nonfarm livelihood opportunities available to the ARC residents. Some maintain sari-sari stores, while others owned motorcycles for hire. DAR, through its Philippine-Australia Technical Support for Agrarian Reform and Rural Development (PATSARRD) Programme, had earlier appraised and analyzed existing conditions in Bohol and the ARCs. Its Team had identified banana production as a potential enterprise. After all, the many rolling areas provided good drainage, and its soil was ideal for bananas. The present volume of production could only meet 2.4 percent of the allocated demand. More importantly, there was a local cooperative that was capable of undertaking the project. Planning for the business To start the ball rolling, the DAR-PATSARRD helped establish a communal farm to produce part of the banana output and to serve as a demonstration area where the farmers could gain experience. This was to be supplemented by produce coming from the backyards of cooperative members. Around the same time, the DAR-PATSARRD got in touch with the Peoples Fair Trade Assistance Center (PFTAC), a nongovernment organization in Tagbilaran City. PFTAC sourced bananas in Bohol for Alter Trade Corp. Philippines (ATCP), which was based in Negros and a direct trading partner of Alter Trade Japan. PFTAC also knew enough of local conditions as it promoted the technology for organic bananas among local cooperatives and small entrepreneurs. Subsequently, DAR personnel trained the cooperatives officers on organizational readiness to prepare them for the project. This included formulating and installing policies, systems and procedures for operating the banana enterprise. For the farmer-participants of GMPCI, the DAR-PATSARRD collaborated with PFTAC to conduct a season-long training program. Two members committed a total of 8,000 sq. m. of their land to be used for demonstration, with 30 percent of the harvest going to them and 70 percent to the cooperative. A total of 1,200 suckers (shoots) of bongan were planted and cultivated by coop members, bayanihan style. At the same time, ten participants each received 100 banana suckers to plant in their own farms. The DAR-PATSARRD followed these with several exposure trips, one of which led to a three-year marketing agreement, wherein ATCP would buy substantial volumes of organic bananas from GMPCI provided these pass its quality standards. Operating in earnest Functionally, the enterprise had four components: Production, trading, post-harvest packing and marketing. Production. To satisfy the Japanese consumers preference for organically grown bananas, they had to use: organic, instead of inorganic, commercial fertilizers; mulching and manual weeding; and botanical, instead of chemical-based, herbicides and pesticides. Trading. At the farm level, the buyers must wear cloth gloves and should hold the banana at the crown portion when making their inspection. Bongan bananas are sorted and selected based on the quality specifications. Only those that pass the product standards will be bought by GMPCI. Post-harvest packing. Bananas from GMPCI farms and elsewhere are brought to the center for quality control and packing. Packing is done every first and third Wednesdays of the month, following ATCPs quality control process. Upon entering the packing center, packers wear rubber boots, apron, hairnets and cloth gloves. Each section of the operation has clearly-delineated work areas and tables with indigenous cushions. The packers clean the packing center and its surroundings a day before the operation, and they also do the same after. Marketing. From the packing center in the ARC, the finished cartons are trucked to the seaport of Tagbilaran City, these are brought by boat to Manila. These are then transferred to a refrigerated van which is then loaded to an international ship for Japan. At one time Alter Trade Corp. Japan returned batches of boxed bananas, including one from GMPCI, because it found a sticker of a Mindanao company known for exporting inorganically grown bananas in one of the boxes. As a result, a Japanese expert came over to Guio-ang ARC to check whether or not the bananas from GMPCI were naturally grown as reported. When it was confirmed that the banana with the sticker did not come from the ARC, shipments of Guio-ang bananas resumed. Although the project is still in its infancy, Vic Jurlano and Aris Portugal, both of PATSARRD, agree that it appears headed for success. Several factors make them optimistic: A market niche and a local partner, a strong community organization and government support. |