AGRIPRENEURS are among those impacted by the ensuing health crisis due to economic and food losses as well as challenges in logistics due to restrictions on movement of goods during the lockdown periods.
Emilia Kio-an, a member of SG Farmers Association and owner of Alredo’s Farm in Benguet, was one of those gravely affected when businesses came to a halt due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
With the closure of commerce and trade, she and her fellow farmers struggled to find ways to sell their fresh farm produce, thus leaving them with much lower sales and wastage of food.
“Mahirap. Hindi kami makakalabas [para] magbenta ng mga gulay namin at may gulay na hindi na nabebenta at nabubulok na sa farm namin (It was hard. We cannot go out to sell our vegetables and we have products that got spoiled in our farm),” Emilia recalled.
The Covid-19 crisis and sudden lockdown had shut down small agri-businesses and the entire industry struggled a lot, forcing many agripreneurs to look for solutions to stay afloat, including immersing themselves in new business opportunities in the digital space.
Good thing, Aboitiz Foundation Inc., through its “Byaheng Digiskarte” project, came to the rescue of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and cooperatives who suffered from the pandemic.
Leveraging on technology, the initiative capacitates and empowers farmers to manage their own agri-businesses online, and assist them to become more digitally literate and capable.
‘Teching up’ co-ops
Since its debut in April 2021 and partnership with different stakeholders, Byaheng Digiskarte has reached various areas nationwide, including Benguet where it teamed up with SG Farmers Association.
Being a beneficiary, the co-operative was provided with a food processing facility and its members also received training courses, starter kits and equipment. This enabled Emilia to expand her line of products beyond fresh farm produce and optimize her income.
“Noon medyo hirap kasi mahirap ’yung facilities kung saan kami nagpo-process. Ngayon may facilities na kami na tulong ng Aboitiz Foundation at Hedcor, at [tinulungan rin nila kami] lalo sa financial assistance (Before [food production] was quite difficult because of facilities we used. Now we have facilities provided by Aboitiz Foundation and Hedcor, and they also provided us with (financial assistance),” she said.
After undergoing a series of training sessions, Emilia started developing and selling ampalaya tea and ampalaya pickles, in addition to farm products like ampalaya, french beans, lemon grass, turmeric, and pandan leaves.
“Nung nag-training kami imbes na itapon, kinuha namin yung mga ‘patapon’ at ’yun ’yung pino-proseso namin kaya walang nasasayang. Imbes na masayang, nadagdagan ang produkto namin (When we were training, instead of throwing [vegetables] away, we got what was to be discarded and processed it so nothing was wasted. Instead of having waste, we now have more products),” she said.
With this program, Emilia and fellow agripreneurs also went beyond local market stalls and served a wider range of customers by opening their own online shops through Session Groceries, an e-commerce platform that links farmers to sellers and delivers products to clients’ doorsteps.
Orders are made through the platform and farmers are immediately prompted for new orders. They then harvest the crops and arrange delivery at the doorsteps of customers from Benguet, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, Rizal, and Metro Manila.
“We are grateful to Aboitiz for partnering with Session Groceries and SG Farmers Association. It is an honor to be included and to receive equipment for the farmers,” said Session Groceries Chief Executive Officer Iloisa Romaraog-Diga. “It’s not easy to start and sustain but because of the opportunities provided by groups like you, everything becomes easy. We will try to do well in what we do so we can also be a blessing to other people and the community we serve just like you.”
“Imbes na yun lang ang benta namin dati ngayon nadagdagan na. dahil nadagdagan kami ng ibebenta, nakatipid pa kami dahil imbes na itapon, pwede pa maging pera (Instead of just having farm produce we now have more products. Our income increased. We have more products to sell and we were able to save because instead of throwing away [products], we are able to convert it to cash),” Emilia explained.
Breakthroughs
BYAHENG Digiskarte led to many firsts and milestones for agripreneurs. Besides learning how to process produce and venture online, they, likewise, opened their very first bank accounts via UnionBank that allows seamless online transactions with clients and helps them manage their finances.
“Noong una wala pa kami ’nung digital na mga cellphone, keypad naman ang [ginagamit] namin. Tapos ngayon kailangan digital ang mga gamit halimbawa sa app, sa online (At first we did not have smartphones, we only used a keypad phone. Now we have to use digital [tools] like applications and going online),” Emilia said.
With brick-and-mortar and virtual stores, new food processing facilities and online bank accounts, agripreneurs grow their business and are now more equipped to adapt to changing times, ready for an emerging digital future.
A flagship project of the Enterprise Development Program of Aboitiz Foundation, Byaheng Digiskarte is designed to help in the recovery and growth of MSMEs and co-operatives that were affected during the pandemic. Its partners include AboitizPower subsidiary Hedcor Inc., UnionBank, Session Groceries, One Concord Food Solutions, and SG Farmers Association, Inc.
Image credits: Aboitiz Foundation Inc.