(This research paper was presented at the Regional Conference on Marketing & Innovation of the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements last Oct. 2, 2015 in Goesan, South Korea.)
Introduction
At
present, smallholders provide more than 70% of total food eaten by people,
using around 20-30% of arable land (Etc Group, 2013). They represent one-third
of the world’s 7.3 billion people. Though they may sound like a major player in
the global economy, they ironically represent the majority of the poorest and
hungriest people in the world (Hugh Locke, 2015).
In
Zamboanga del Sur, a southwestern province of the Philippines, a new farming
system is emerging that promises a bright future for the smallholders to be free
from hunger and poverty. This new farming strategy aims to liberate the
smallholders from hunger and poverty, the threshold of which is pegged by the
Philippine government at $140 a month for a family of six. Since this new farming
system is only applied to cassava crops at present, it is called the
Gahung-gahung Organic Cassava Farming System (GO-CFS). Upon assumption of office in 2010, Zamboanga
del Sur Provincial Governor Antonio Cerilles conceptualized and rolled out the GO-CFS
as his flagship livelihood project, targeting the smallholders as the primary
beneficiaries. The GO-CFS appears to be a game changer to the life of the
smallholders.
The objective of this research is to
determine if the GO-CFS is feasible and viable for adoption by the smallholders.
Researchers conducted a survey and key informant interviews with said beneficiary
smallholders to answer the research question, and then they carefully studied
the quantitative and qualitative data along with available related literature.
This new farming technology guides each
farmer on how to plant cassava on his one-hectare farm by dividing it equally
to ten plots and planting on only one plot each month until he completes the
whole area in the 10th month. Starting in the 11th month, he can expect a
monthly cassava harvest. Before he harvests cassava, this strategy guides each
farmer to plant intercrops, either corn or vegetables, in between the rows of
cassava so that he can already earn an income while waiting for cassava
harvest. After each cassava harvest, he
again plants cassava to continue the monthly cycle of cassava production and
sustain his monthly cassava harvest and income.
With the intent of ensuring the continuing
productivity of his cassava farm in spite of its frequent use, this technology
guides the farmer to dig a square-foot hole, for each cassava hill, to be
filled with organic fertilizers, like compost. This technology is meant to
address the high-absorptive capacity of cassava for nutrients and avoid the
degradation of the soil. It is made clear to the farmer that the sustainability
of this technology ultimately lies in the health of the soil.
Methods and
materials
With the intent of ensuring the continuing
productivity of his cassava farm in spite of its frequent use, this technology
guides the farmer to dig a square-foot hole, for each cassava hill, to be
filled with organic fertilizers, like compost. This technology is meant to
address the high-absorptive capacity of cassava for nutrients and avoid the
degradation of the soil. It is made clear to the farmer that the sustainability
of this technology ultimately lies in the health of the soil.
After having finalized the
methodology of GO-CFS, the provincial government through 70 agriculture
extension workers called livelihood coordinators mobilized around 1000
smallholders to adopt the GO-CFS in their farms as project beneficiaries starting
in December 2013. The provincial government complemented it with a minimal
consumption loan through a microfinance enterprise to bridge the beneficiary
smallholders while waiting for their first cassava harvest in the 11th
month.
This research investigates the
performance of the beneficiary smallholders to know the feasibility and
viability of GO-CFS. Researchers
surveyed the said smallholders to determine whether they complied with the
required monthly production of the GO-CFS. Quantitative data shows that only 98
farmers met with the required monthly production, and those who complied had
relatively higher yield per hill of cassava. A literature review was then
conducted to develop the questionnaire for the key informant interviews needed
to get the qualitative data. In getting the qualitative data, researchers
conducted semi-structured interviews with those who failed to comply in order
to determine the factors that kept them from complying with the requirements.
Researchers also conducted semi-structured interviews with the 10% compliant
farmers to study their best practices in adopting the GO-CFS.
This research gathered more
qualitative data from the compliant farmers because they were the ones who
tested whether or not the GO-CFS is feasible and viable. The compliant farmers
were asked to compare their farming practices before and after they adopted the
GO-CFS. Researchers asked them about the problems they encountered in adopting
the GO-CFS and how they were able to surmount them, as well as about how they
benefitted from the GO-CFS. These compliant
smallholders serve as models for the rest of the smallholders the world over.
Results and
Conclusions
Fear of the unknown kept many of the
beneficiary smallholders from planting cassava every month. In conventional
farming, they are used to plant cassava on a seasonal basis, which is only once
a year. They are not used to plant during the dry season. Thus, they were
afraid of what would happen to their crops when the long dry spell of six
months hit the country in late 2014 to early 2015. Usually, a dry period would
only last from three to four months. Most of the beneficiary smallholders then
stopped planting for fear that they would have nothing to harvest if they
continued the monthly production requirement of the GO-CFS. They were afraid
that their efforts during the long dry spell would be in vain.
The compliant farmers pressed on in
spite of the long dry spell. They kept in planting cassava on at least
one-tenth of a hectare per month that is the size of each plot in the GO-CFS.
Since the plot area is not big, the beneficiary smallholders found it easy to
water their plants for at least more than a month. They also found out that a
two-month-old cassava plant could already survive a dry spell even without
watering it. Though the growth of cassava crops conspicuously stunted then,
they did not die. The encouragement of the livelihood coordinators also helped
a lot the farmers to press on. With a glimmer of hope, the compliant farmers followed
the monthly production requirement of the GO-CFS in spite of the challenges
they faced during the long dry spell.
When the rainy season came in the 2nd
quarter of 2015, the cassava crops with stunted growth recovered fast. In a few
weeks, the conditions of the plants were already healthy. The beneficiary
smallholders were then optimistic that they could sustain the monthly
production requirement since their crops would no longer die for lack of water.
With regards to the yield during the
long dry spell, it appeared that mature cassava crops, at least five months
old, were only slightly affected because they still produced sufficient yield
that allowed them to earn a decent monthly income. The yield varied depending on
the variety of cassava that they planted and on how they managed their farm. Though
the yield varied, it was at least sufficient since it enabled the beneficiary
smallholders to earn a monthly income from around $180 to $470 per plot.
With such a monthly income, the compliant
smallholders have somehow liberated themselves from the bondage of poverty.
They can no longer be called poor technically, as they were already above the
poverty threshold pegged at around $140. Their purchasing power increases. They can already afford to buy sufficient food and other necessities. They are now in a better position
to send their children to school even up to higher education. Meeting their basic needs, they get more happiness and less stress in life. Indeed, they have improved their living conditions. With better living conditions, they serve as models for
those who want to liberate from poverty.
Ironically, as the compliant farmers
find their income getting better than before, they also find their farmwork
getting easier. They only have to take care of a few garden-size plots. Mature
cassava planted earlier in other plots can survive by themselves. Thus, the
farmers become more flexible on their time to work on the farm. They have the
option to avoid the scorching heat of the sun and still have enough time to
finish their farm work on cassava. They do not need to hire labor anymore, as
their own family can already do the farm work with ease. Farming is no longer stressful. The work is no
longer backbreaking, yet they are sure of a decent monthly income.
Lastly, compliant farmers find this
new farming system as a low-cost and environmentally-friendly activity. They
only need to do composting to sustain the health of their soil and pest
management to protect their crops from diseases. Instead of buying harmful
chemicals, they make their organic fertilizers gathered from their
surroundings. They can save the cost of chemical inputs and avoid soil
degradation. Any smallholder can do such a low-cost activity and can contribute
something beneficial to the environment just by doing it.
Given the performance of compliant farmers,
this study concludes that the GO-CFS is feasible and viable for adoption by the
smallholders. It is achievable because it is practical for them. It only needs
a hectare to do it. It is a very low-cost activity, which does not require
chemical inputs and hired labor. It is also viable because it provides farmers sufficient
harvest and sufficient monthly income that results in the well-being of their
families. The smallholders will surely sustain something that ushers well-being
to their families. Being environment-friendly contributes to the viability of
the GO-CFS. By maintaining soil health, it surely can last in spite of the
frequent use of land resources. Indeed, the compliant farmers have blazed a
trail showing to the rest of the smallholders that the GO-CFS is feasible and
viable.
References
Etc Group.2013. With Climate
Change…Who Will Feed Us? Food Poster.
http://www.etcgroup.org/sites/www.etcgroup.org/files/Food%20Poster_Design-Sept042013.pdf
Hugh Locke.2015. Smallholder
farmers are the new global food frontier.
http://www.theguardian.com/the-b-team-partner-zone/2015/may/12/smallholder-farmers-producers-agriculture-food-women
Julius Breva.2015.Addressing World
Hunger. Kosmos: Journal for Global
Transformation. http://www.kosmosjournal.org/reader-essay/addressing-world-hunger
FAO.1996. Food Security and Food
Assistance. World Food Summit Technical
Background Doc. Rome
FAO,
IFAD & WFP. 2012. Imagining
a world free from hunger: Ending hunger and malnutrition and ensuring food and
nutrition security. http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/pdf/Think%20Pieces/6_food_nutrition.pdf
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