Farmers in Kapalong, Davao del Norte are profitting from cassava, both as an alternative staple and viable source of income.
Alfredo Sumatra, member of Mamacao Rural Livelihood Association (MRLA) said cassava helped sustain his family overcome hunger as they had been consuming the crop as their alternative staple.
“There were times when we can hardly afford to buy even a kilo of rice, my family resorted to cassava as our substitute staple,” Sumatra said.
Aside from being an alternative staple, cassava can offer better income for small farmers considering the growing demand of this crop as raw materials for feeds, beverage, and biofuel.
“When we were given the opportunity to qualify and access funds from MRDP [Mindanao Rural Development Program], we proposed to venture into cassava production,” said MRLA chairman Benito Banquil.
MRDP is a long-term poverty alleviation project of the Department of Agriculture (DA) aimed to improve rural incomes through infrastructure and livelihood support.
Through the Community Fund for Agricultural Development (CFAD), MRDP’s livelihood component, the association was able to access P250, 000 which were used to purchase quality planting materials and farm inputs.
Marciano Balmes, one of the beneficiaries that availed himself of the planting materials and inputs had already earned at least P180, 000 in just one cropping season.
“I planted the cassava seedlings I received as an intercrop to a five-hectare rubber farm. While waiting for my young rubber trees to be productive, I was surprised that was able to earn that much from cassava,” Balmes said.
“Out of my income, I was able to acquire a two-hectare farm which now serves as an expansion for our cassava production. I also bought a multipurpose cab which now serves as our family vehicle,” he said.
Balmes said growing cassava over other crops has a lot of advantages which include minimal financing; not labor intensive, giving him enough time to venture in other economic activities; and there is a ready market for his produce.
“Marketing of cassava is not a problem as traders which supply the country’s leading beverage company regularly come to our area to buy our produce,” Banquil said.
DA director for Davao region Oscar Parawan in a recent cassava stakeholders’ forum said increasing demand for cassava requires to increase production from 9.52 MT per hectare to 21 MT ton per hectare in 2014.
“We want our small holder farmers to seize this opportunity of which the Mamacao farmers in Kapalong have already an edge considering their successful experience in growing this cassava,” Parawan said. [Noel T. Provido/DA-MRDP]
