For the sixth consecutive year, BusinessMirror‘s commitment to providing a broader look at today’s business, particularly in the agricultural sector, was recognized at Monday night’s Bright Leaf Agricultural Journalism Awards.
The BusinessMirror took home two awards, the most for any single news outfit, at the 16th Bright Leaf Agricultural Journalism Awards on November 13.
The BusinessMirror‘s agricultural journalism pieces have been recognized consistently at the Bright Leaf Agriculture Journalism Awards: 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021.
This year the BusinessMirror brought home again the top prize of Best Agricultural Story for Henry E. Empeño’s piece titled “Good as Gold.” The story dwelled on Zambales’s mango industry, its challenges and prospects as a growing contributor to the province’s economy.
This is the second straight year that the BusinessMirror won the Best Agricultural Story, which is chosen by the panel of judges among all the winners across all the categories of the Bright Leaf Agricultural Journalism Awards.
The BusinessMirror‘s explanatory story on the Philippines’ sugar crisis last year bagged the Best Feature Story of the Year.
The story was produced by a team of reporters comprised of BusinessMirror‘s Cai U. Ordinario, Jovee Marie Dela Cruz and Jovy Nelle Rodriguez, a journalism student from the Lyceum of the Philippines University. The production and editing of the story was supervised by Broader Look Editor Dennis Estopace.
BusinessMirror reporter Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas also contributed in the story but was not formally declared as part of the winning team since he is still serving his competition ban for being a Hall of Fame awardee.
BusinessMirror Editor in Chief Lourdes M. Fernandez and Associate Editor Jennifer A. Ng, who edits the agriculture and commodities page, led the acceptance of the awards during the return of the face-to-face awarding ceremony in Makati City, the first since the Covid-19 pandemic struck the country.
This year, the Bright Leaf Agricultural Journalism Awards received over 500 entries nationwide across its 11 categories.
“Bright Leaf’s central mission is to honor Filipino agricultural journalists by providing them with the platform to showcase their work in print, audiovisual, radio, and online media. With the Bright Leaf Awards we can be sure that other Filipinos can access their stories,” Krip Yuson, the chairman of the board of judges, said.
“It is also a privilege to be able to share the Bright Leaf Journalism Awards with veteran and budding journalists. In fact, this year we have the pleasure of celebrating seven new awardees who will be receiving a Bright Leaf Award for the first time this evening. Five of them joined the competition for the first time. Truly their work speaks to the theme of the 16th Bright Leaf Agricultural Journalism Awards: harvesting progress,” Yuson added.
PMFTC Inc. global communications director Dave Gomez echoed Yuson, emphasizing that the future of agricultural journalism in the country is bright.
“It is good to know that we can entrust these valuable [agricultural] stories to the bright minds and eager hearts of journalists, whether they are veterans or young and emerging. By providing a platform for their stories and images to be seen worldwide, we are sowing the seeds for excellence in agricultural journalism,” Gomez said.
Jervis Manahan of ABS-CBN News won the Best Online Story for his piece titled “The Onion Story,” while Genory Vanz S. Alfasain, a contributing writer for SunStar Davao, won the Best Feature Story (Regional).
In the news category, Erwin P. Nicavera of SunStar Bacolod won the Best Agriculture News Story (Regional) and Carmela Reyes-Estrope bagged the Best Agriculture News Story (National).
TV 5’s Shyla Francisco took home the Best Agriculture TV Story for her feature titled “Gintong Ani.” Zhander Cayabyab of DZXL 558 won the Best Agriculture Radio Story.
Bong Sarmiento of Mindanews bagged the Best Tobacco Story, while Christina Eloisa Baclig of Inquirer.net won the Best Story in Tobacco Product Alternative.
Rhoy Cobilla took home the Agricultural Photo of the Year award, while Wilfredo Lomibao of Sunday Punch won the Tobacco Photo of the Year.
Image credits: Roy Domingo