Hope from Tuburan’s coffee farms
Bregido Montañez, 47, has been tilling his cornfields in Tuburan town, northwest Cebu ever since he was a teenager. His yearly yield, however, could hardly sustain his family's needs. He is a father of two.
But things began to change when he started working at the town's talked-about coffee plantation.
Montañez is the president of the people's organization in Barangay Kabangkalan, considered as the "heart" of the municipal government's coffeeplanting program.
Because of its strategic location, Kabangkalan is being eyed as a main trade center where various produce from neighboring villages can be displayed.
The local government began the program four years ago when it found out that the town's lands were actually suitable for coffee farming.
It all started in Kabangkalan, which houses the main nursery site for the mass planting. The barangay produces the most coffee beans among all villages in town that cultivate coffee.
Now, officials are looking at establishing a coffee shop atop a mountain in the barangay that is overlooking the vast plantation site to introduce eco-tourism in the town.
With the support of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources' National Greening Program, the communitybased initiative blossomed and expanded to several communities, including those in the mountain villages.
The National Greening Program is a massive forest rehabilitation program of the government established by virtue of Executive Order No. 26 issued on February 24, 2011 by President Benigno Aquino III.
It seeks to grow 1.5 billion trees in 1.5 million hectares nationwide within a period of six years, from 2011 to 2016.
Mayor Democrito Diamante, during a field exposure visit organized by the DENR-7, said the target is to plant coffee in every conducive spot all over the town.
"We want that when people enter Tuburan, they will smell the strong scent of coffee,” he said, “that we will become distinct of that very own product we have."
Now, he wants the townspeople to engage in coffee-related livelihood, especially in growing these plants even along the national roads.
There are now 16 people's organizations in the town, manning a coffee plantation that spans 2,850 hectares.
Such huge project entailed commitment, said Diamante.
When town officials were consulted by DENR, they purposely opted to plant coffee seedlings instead of other fruit-bearing trees, acknowledging the coffee's strong potential to make it big in the market.
The mayor said he tapped the expertise of a private consultant who has worked with one of the country's known coffee brands to produce quality beans.
He admitted the town continues to find sustainable livelihoods for its marginalized constituents.
Through coffee production, he hopes that the municipal government could at least contribute to poverty alleviation, especially among farmers.
As for Montañez, life has started to improve after he has shifted to coffee farming. In fact, he said, one of his children is now in college.