Mang Ben: The man who used his coconut

MANILA, Philippines - Being born to a family of farmers, it was a no brainer  for Benjamin R. Lao or ‘Mang Ben’ of Bansalan, Davao del Sur to end up tending a farm of his own.

Even when his parents, who were both farmers, encouraged him to traverse a field different from farming, Mang Ben pursued what he loves most.  

This is a story of a man who used his coconut.

Surrounded by farmers who regularly planted rice, corn and other crops, Mang Ben fell in love with farming at a young age.

“My parents wanted me to be a lawyer. But I wanted to toil the land to produce food to feed my family and earn sustainable income,” he explained.  

“Masuwerte ako dahil nabigyan ako ng aking mga magulang ng lupa na matatamnan,” he narrated. (I was fortunate that my parents gave me a piece of land to till.)

Mang Ben inherited a five-hectare farm when his father died 13 years ago. The farm was then planted to 325 old coconut trees, which produced a measly 800 nuts every three months or two to three nuts per tree.

With such dismal yield, Mang Ben sought technical assistance from the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) of the Department of Agriculture (DA).

“I had to ask assistance from DA and PCA experts because even if I was exposed to the intricacies of agriculture and coconut production for the longest time, I knew I needed help,” he said.

Aside from the technical assistance from agricultural technicians, he read various magazines and agri-books to educate himself.   

“I started to re-learn the basics. I read a lot and attended seminars on effective farm management. Tapos lahat nung natutunan ko, sinunod ko,” he said. (And all the things I learned I adopted.)

When he was ready to go on his own, he developed the hilly portion of his farmland using the Sloping Agricultural Land Technology to prevent soil erosion.

“When I was just starting my project, I decided to plant “Malabatong” (Flemingia macrophylla) and other leguminous deep-rooting shrubs around the farm as a soil conservation technique,” he said with a smile.

Luckily, the bushes were also good sources of nitrogen for his trees and soon enough the whole area was planted with various shrubs serving two purposes.  

Then, he utilized everything that was available to him.

Using natural ingredients such as goat’s manure, kakawate, makabuhay and hot pepper, he concocted a special blend of organic pesticide he named EMAN—which stands for Epektibo, Mura at Natural. True enough, this inexpensive mixture is effective in repelling plant pests and diseases.

Gusto ko ipaalam sa mga magsasaka natin na maaring magtanim at umani ng malaki kahit walang kemikal na ginagamit,”  he explained. (I wanted to teach the farmers that they can plant and earn big even without the use of chemical.) 

Today his farm, planted to coconuts and hundreds of high value crops, validate his advocacy.

 Aside from the 15,000 nuts he harvests four times a year, Mang Ben earns a sizable income from his lanzones, durian, rambutan and mangosteen trees. He also maintains a goat raising project.

“I diversified to maximize the land area and ventured into food processing to add value to my farm products,” he added.

Under the name Donna Belle Delicacies, his product line includes coconut honey, coconut sugar, coconut syrup and coconut sap drink. He also makes durian jam, candies and durian ice cream with goat’s milk which is one of Donna Belle’s best selling products.

Through the years, Mang Ben’s little piece of heaven here on earth expanded to ten hectares providing employment to a number of residents of the barangay. Aside from sharing his success, he also gives back to the community by launching well-meaning programs including free lectures on organic farming.

This year, Mang Ben’s innovations, determination and hardwork will be recognized as he accepts the National Award for Outstanding Organic Agriculture Farmer via the 2011 Gawad Saka. The honor comes with the a citation from Malacañang and P100,000 cash prize.