Planting seeds of hope in the Cordilleras

MANILA, Philippines - The terraces of the Cordilleras are a cultural heritage, built by decades of hard-working hands.  Over time, however, lack of support and exposure has been major obstacles for the farming communities in this massive mountain range.

“We saw an opportunity to help,” says Romeo Ong, CEO of Sunnywood Superfoods Corp.

It is not often that you see businesses claiming this phrase – and actually meaning it.  But for the rice distributor and the Cordillera Heirloom Rice Project, this statement goes beyond just their mission and vision.  It stands as a major core of their enterprise.

Sunnywood is a trailblazer in the distribution of branded and healthy whole grain rice hailing from various parts of the country, including the Cordilleras (brands include Harvester’s, Jordan Farms and Farmboy).  In addition to their thrust of raising awareness about local and traditional rice, however, the company has also made a commitment to extend its blessings to others.

When asked about his reason behind this thrust, Ong says, “for us, we wanted to go beyond just business. We saw this opportunity 17 years ago when we worked with farmer-producers of organically grown, unpolished rice looking for a market.”

He continues, “we took this challenge and was fortunate enough to increase appreciation for healthy rice products while providing a steady source of income to the producers and cooperatives. ”

But Sunnywood didn’t stop there. After meeting at a conference in Italy, the rice distributor struck a partnership with the Cordillera Heirloom Rice Project to further extend its efforts.

Saving a heritage

Project founders Mary Hensley and Vicky Garcia dream of great things. A former Peace Corp volunteer and an experienced program planner and community organizer, the pair has built together a sustainable environment for farmers over the years.

Mary recalls how her story all started back in 1999 when she read about the collapse of the terraces in the country. She narrated: “It just broke my heart to think that in my lifetime, what was a very strong and vibrant culture was going to disappear. One of my memories for being a Peace Corp volunteer was for three times a day, for two years, I ate the most wonderful rice in the world.“

After 30 years of being away, Mary returned to the Philippines and founded the Cordillera Heirloom Rice Project with Vicky.

The perfect partnership

The project had one major hurdle — in order to make the partnership flourish, they needed to market the product in a wider scale. And this is where the partnership with Sunnywood was born.

By buying the heirloom rice for higher price margins, barangays in the Cordilleras were able to build a daycare center, purchase a generator, and a community jeepney. The pan-Cordilleran Rice Terraces Farmers’ Cooperative has so far consolidated  a volume of 142 metric tons of native rice for commercial sales which totals P8.6 million in direct payment to farmers.

The art of rice

Rice varieties from the project are all cultivated using the traditional way of farming passed down through generations. The rice stalks, which are taller than the lowland varieties are all grown organically and handpicked individually during harvest. Once they are sent to distributors, they are assessed critically before the packaging to ensure their quality.

“We want to help in three ways: first, we market the rice to a wider audience; second, we help sustain the tradition and heritage of these communities; and third, we help them flourish as individuals and as a community,” Ong says.