By Karen
Gawigawen
TUBLAY, Benguet – A
cancer survivor of this town is a finalist to win the top award of “National
Gawad Saka high value crops farmer category” which espouses safe and effective
farming.
Rebecca R. Faustino of
Nalseb, Ambassador here, being a native of Buguias town where heavy pesticide
use have been reported over the years, said, she is aware of effects of pesticides
to a person’s body being a cancer survivor.
It is one of the
reasons why she and her workers pursued safe farming practices to get GAP
certification in production of safe and quality vegetable products for
consumers.
Faustino is the owner
and manager of La Faustino Farm, one of the first PhilGAP registered farms in
the Cordillera.
She is helped by her
husband Lito and their youngest son Rex who was convinced by her mother to work
full time in the farm. In cases where more manpower is required, she hires farm
workers to help. They produce high value crops such as bell pepper, broccoli,
tomato, lettuce, aragula, spinach, and strawberry.
Jallyne Remoquillo and
Julie Solis from the Dept. of Agriculture Central Office’s high value crops and
development program and Flora A. Jarilla
and Lorna Villegas from Bureau of Plant and Industries - Los Baños composed a
validation team that interviewed Faustino.
They went around the
farm to validate the documents submitted to them.
Among 14 regions that
submitted their entries for said category, seven were shortlisted. Faustino was
included as national finalist.
The team is validating
shortlisted finalist up to the end of September.
The national Gawad
Saka winners will be proclaimed in October.
Faustino said she wanted
to share good practices they do in the farm so that other farmers will also
enjoy working in their own farms.
She urged farmers to
imitate their good practices so they will become partners in meeting demand of
the market. The team was assisted by DA-CAR HVCDP focal person Joan Bacbac;
planning, monitoring and evaluation chief Susan Balanza; APCO Gabriel Pacio of
Benguet; Municipal Agriculturist Jeffrey Sotero of Tublay and committee on
agriculture chairman Reynaldo Sotero of Tublay Sangguniang Bayan.
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