INTERVENTION. A member of the United Highlander Farmers Producers Cooperative in Senator Ninoy Aquino town, Sultan Kudarat province tries out a grinding equipment from the Department of Agrarian Reform in this undated photo. DAR said the improved processing facility is expected to boost the cooperative’s production and increase its profit. (Courtesy of DAR)
MANILA – An agrarian reform beneficiary organization (ARBO) based in Sultan Kudarat province is seen to boost its production of coffee and cacao products through a newly renovated facility complete with processing and packaging equipment from the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR).
The United Highlander Farmers Producers Cooperative (UHFPC), located in Barangay Nati, Senator Ninoy Aquino town, committed to fully utilize the equipment for the benefit of their members.
“We thank the DAR-Sultan Kudarat for always being supportive of us and for always assisting us, especially in terms of providing us what we need so we could have an additional income and provide for our family,” said UHFPC chairperson Ma. Corazon Estandarte in a news release on Friday.
The UHFPC produces robusta coffee beans and tablea, the processed cacao beans usually used for chocolate drinks.
Although the main crop of UHFPC is coffee, DAR saw the potential of tablea becoming more competitive.
The DAR said the project was made possible through its Village Level Farm-focused Enterprise Development (VLFED) project.
“The VLFED enables the ARBs to produce market-competitive products through value addition by providing them with appropriate facilities and equipment for their products to become more competitive, increase their profits and strengthen their organization,” Mary Jane Aguilar, Provincial Agrarian Reform Program Officer II, said in a statement.
Jenevieve Lirazan, VLFED point person, said the UHFPC was chosen as recipient of the project because it has an existing product (tablea) that has the potential to be improved and make its way up.
Moreover, she said that the UHFPC is already organized and has demonstrated devotion to the project and willingness to learn and improve its products.
Before the actual turnover of the project, members of the UHFCP also underwent tablea processing training facilitated by DAR.
The PHP350,000 facility and equipment is among DAR Secretary Conrado Estrella III’s intensified support services and diversified income sources to agrarian reform beneficiaries. (PNA)
