by Bella Labatos

Ever since the project was launched, it has been our goal to decrease the incidence of work-related injuries among the farmers of Sitio Rero-an through, of course, giving them personal protective equipment. However, these PPEs are also susceptible to damage. They should be well-taken care of, because if not, they might need replacements. This dilemma brought the team and the core group to discuss possible sustainability ideas.

Prior to the actual meet-up for sustainability planning, we consulted the core group during our team building activity about the different farm produce that are abundantly available within their vicinity. They suggested a lot of vegetables and fruits but we were able to narrow it down to five, namely okra, cacao, papaya, patola and banana. From these produce, we deliberately searched for possible products that are simple and cost-effective.

After the consultation, we scheduled another meeting with the core group. This time, we introduced the products which we think are feasible and helpful for them. These products include turning cacao into tablea or chocolate, banana into banana chips, papaya into atsara, okra into a conditioner, and patola into a loofah soap. Each product comes with a simple procedure and financial breakdown. These products will be introduced and sold to stores within the area, to the neighboring barangays and also the town proper.

An open forum then followed after our presentation. This was the time where the members of the core group gave their opinions and suggestions. One can actually see how devoted and active they are based from their insights. Mrs. Lagaurdia, representative of Zone 6, even suggested to do three products than doing only one, which was our initial plan. She suggested doing the tablea, atsara and banana chips because for her, these are the products they are most familiar with. The other members were also in favor with Mrs. Laguardia’s opinion. Thus, these products was our utmost priority in terms of finding possible trainers who could teach them.

This meeting was very productive. It allowed us to hear more from them and less from us. They became more participative than ever, which is a good thing. Based from the forum that we had, you can really see how dedicated they are. In fact, they assured us that they will work together as a group, and as a community, to make the products and sell it. This, more than ever, have intensified our desire to help them and make things work for them.