One of the most common problem aired by farmers whenever I get to talk with them is the marketing of their produce given the reality that the market system of agricultural products in the country is controlled by traders and middlemen.

Lured by good prices during off-harvest season, farmers of Alamada, North Cotabato planted hundreds of hectares of "Kalabasa."

And who would not be tempted to invest in "Kalabasa" when the price was P30 per kilo which means that if the farmer harvests 10 tons, which is very low, he will earn P300,000.

The problem was when harvest season came, the buying price dropped to as low as P3 per kilo and some farmers opted not to harvest their squash anymore.

In introducing two new crops to the farmers of Alamada, Sorghum and Soybeans, I presented two new schemes - Partnership Farming or Growership Agreement With Buy-Back Scheme.

In the Partnership Farming, I will plant Soybeans in their land.

After harvest I will Buy-Back the produce at an agreed price, deduct the expenses and we share the net income 50-50.

Under the Growership Agreement for Sorghum, our company, Southseas Agri-Aqua Ventures, Inc. will provide them the seeds and technical assistance with the farmers undertaking all the other activities.

They could also avail of the tractor services which I offer on a Plow-Now-Pay-Later Scheme, including the services of a drone for spraying and a Mechanical Harvester.

After harvest, SAAV Inc. Buys-Back the Sorghum at an agreed price.

I will just deduct the cost of the seeds and the tractor services and the farmer gets all of the earnings after the deduction of expenses.

This is not a new scheme here in Mindanao as many agricultural companies have already been doing this and while the complaint had always been "hindi makaka-jackpot si farmer" because of a pre-agreed price, this actually protects him from traders and middlemen.

With a fixed and pre-agreed buying price, the farmer could project how much he would earn at the end of the season and he will not have to worry whether there is a market for his produce or whether he would make a profit or not.

#profitabilityspursproductivity!

My involvement in the propagation and promotion of agricultural crops like Jackfruit, Sorghum, and Soybeans is mainly motivated by a personal desire to cut the country's dependence on imported products which could be grown locally.

When Pres. Rodrigo Duterte appointed me as Agriculture Secretary in 2016, one of the first things that I did was to ask officials of the Dept. of Agriculture to submit to me a list of agricultural products which were imported or sourced from other countries.

The list was shocking as it was a stark proof of how much we had neglected our agriculture and ignored the potentials of the country to grow its own food.

Among the imported items were Tomatoes, Cutflowers, Monggo or Mungbeans, Garlic, Onion Sorghum, Soybeans, Rice, Corn, and, hold on to your seats, 'Langka' or Jackfruit.

Statistics bared that the Philippines imported some P500-M worth of Jackfruit from Vietnam and other countries every year for our processed food products like Ice Cream and "Turon".

Jackfruit importation is shocking because the "Langka" fruit tree is part of an iconic rural farm where behind the "Kubo" is a Jackfruit and a Coconut.

Jackfruit is endemic to the Philippines and it grows all over the country but the reason why we failed to satisfy the needs of the processing industry is because Jackfruit farming had always been a backyard activity.

Isang puno, dalawang puno, masaya na tayo at may makukunan ng panghalo sa Baboy at Kadyos at may makakain na ilang pirasong bunga.

General Santos City-based Agribusiness Advocate Rene Pamintuan had always rued the fact that our fruit farming in the country, especially Jackfruit Farming had not been elevated to an industry scale where the volume could assure the market of a sustained supply.

I fully agree with Rene Pamintuan because right now, only multinationals and big companies are involved in plantation operations like Del Monte, Dole Philippines, TADECO, and Dizon Farms.

Paano tayo kikita sa "Langka" kung dalawang puno lang ang tanim natin or for that matter how could we wean ourselves from dependence on imported cut flowers kung walang industry?

Perhaps, this will give the followers of this page an idea on why I have embraced such advocacies as Growing and Propagating the EVIARC Sweet Jackfruit, Giant Bamboo, Sorghum, Soybeans, and soon Wheat, Barley, and Triticale in cooperation with three State Universities.

The Filipino farmer could produce most of the crops that we import now but the government must lead and pave the way for the birth of an industry.

A National Program for Jackfruit, Avocado, Sorghum, Soybeans, Durian, and others should be initiated by the national government to be supported by a reliable marketing and promotions program to ensure market for these produce.

Kaya nating Imaging self-sufficient sa halos lahat ng agricultural products but we have to come up with a well-planned national program to do this.

#GovernanceIsCommonSense!
#KungGustoMaramingParaan!

Betel Nut, locally known as "Bunga," is the best natural dewormer for Free-Range Chicken.

In just 5 to 10 minutes after a fowl is given a slice of the young meat of Betel Nut, all types of worms are expelled from the chicken.

A second dose after 15 days will clean your chicken of intestinal parasites which affect their growth.

I have planted Betel Nuts in my farm to be used for my Manok Pinoy.

A friend and neighbor also gave us hundreds of mature nuts which we are now propagating.

This will save the farmer a lot of money spent on commercial dewormers.

#farmisthebestclassroom!