SE works for Loreto Davis
As a liaison officer in San Isidro municipal hall, Loreto Davis, 57, hopes to retire early so he can focus on managing his 1.7-hectare farm with 200 trees of coconut and 500 hills of cacao.
With the falling prices of copra, Davis, a member of Small Coconut Farmers Organization (SCFO) in San Isidro has been diversifying into other crops such as cardava banana to cope up with this challenge.
According to him, the support of cooperatives such as Laak Multipurpose Cooperative (LAMPCO), a social enterprise partner of Peace and Equity Foundation, has been essential in increasing his income.
“Malaki ang tulong nila (LAMPCO). Ang produkto namin sa kanila namin binebenta. Yung mga fertilizer, sa LAMPCO namin kinukuha. Pati ibang mga ginagamit namin (sa pagsasaka) galing sa kanila,” he said.
He is currently selling his dehusked coconut to LAMPCO and wet cacao beans to trader Kennemer Foods International, Inc.
