The Philippines is the second biggest coconut producing country in the world. Yet, around 60% of this agricultural industry’s farmers, workers and their families struggle for daily survival. Francisco Rubio, founder and chief executive officer of Green Life Coco Products, Inc. (GreenLife) in Tayabas, Quezon province, knows this reality pretty well. The son of a […]
In the 1990s, the dean of a small college learned to his dismay that his region of Bicol, although rich in agricultural resources, was among the poorest places in the country. Faced with dismal statistics, Justino Arboleda, dean of the College of Agriculture in Bicol University and an agricultural engineering graduate from the Tokyo University, […]
Once considered a luxurious delight just for wealthy people, chocolate has become a household treat as middle class families with disposable incomes have grown in numbers. Fortunately, too, more socially-conscious entrepreneurs are veering towards more sustainable production and fair trade partnerships, thus opening opportunities for small cacao farmers and processors. Looking to fill the fair […]
Chocolate is one of the world’s most exciting foods. From Central America—where the earliest settlers called the drink “bitter water” and revered cacao as a gift from the gods—chocolate as a drink and food additive has gained popularity as well as exotic appeal over the centuries and across the globe. Today, one of the world’s […]
After water, coffee is the most consumed drink worldwide. In the Philippines, coffee is more than that. It is a high-value crop grown mainly by small farmers. The small town of Atok in Benguet province gets its name from the local phrase nay patok shi chonto (“on the mountain top”). Atok is located high in […]
Her heart was pained after a visit to a home for abandoned and street children. The then teenaged high school girl thought deeply, as she now relates, “I was so shaken when I got home. I prayed and asked why God allowed those kids to suffer. I asked Him what I did to deserve all […]
BATAKS PERFORM ‘lambai rituals’ [that honor the] spirits of honeybees with prayers, dances, songs, and instrumental music. Tagbanuas believe that a hive is a gift to the finder by the guardians of the forest, hence offer prayers and thanks to these guardians. Nagkakaisang mga Tribu ng Palawan (United Tribes of Palawan) or Natripal is an […]
Over a couple of years ago, Bai Wahida M. Abtahi, the soft-spoken lady who was also the president of Katiyakap, was wondering if a Shariah compliant micro-financing is possible as a project that the organization can take up. “Sa umpisa, wala kaming alam kung papaano gagawin, pero may mga taong tumulong sa amin” (We have […]
The demand for healthy food continues to rise globally. Products like organic rice, muscovado (raw sugar from a simple evaporation of sugarcane juice) and coconut sap sugar fill the fitness bill of health-conscious consumers. In the Philippines, 30 farmers’ associations were being supported by the Philippine Development Assistance Program (PDAP), an NGO that pioneered in […]