He earns more as a coffee farmer than as an accountant

Ben Herrera was a mere “weekend farmer” several years ago. After taking up coffee farming “more seriously” in the last two years, he now earns more as a coffee farmer than his salary as an accountant in Sultan Kudarat.

Like Herrera, more and more of the country’s farmers in Mindanao are encouraged to plant coffee due to competitive market prices, increasing coffee demand, and the availability of technologically-advanced farming expertise which are focused on improving yields and bean quality. Up to 100,000 Filipinos are presently dependent on coffee for their livelihood.

In fact, coffee is one of the most valuable commodities in the plant. It is the most consumed beverage globally, and is second only to oil as the most valuable commodity exported by developing countries.

Good farming practices

Two years ago, Herrera attended a coffee farming seminar at Nestle’s Experimental and Demonstration Farm (NEDF) in Tagum City, Davao. There, he learned about the Common Code for the Coffee Community (4C).

4C is a voluntary code adopted by coffee producers, traders and others involved in coffee growing, processing and trading. Efficient production, profitability, transparency and agricultural sustainability are the goals of 4C.

Equipped with this new knowledge, Herrera was able to transform his once idle coffee farm to a profitable business in a short period of time.

Why coffee farming

Even small farmers can readily start coffee farming as it needs only a minimal investment. Labor and materials cost just around P40,000 per hectare. Coffee farmers earn as much as P98,000 per hectare, or more than double their investment starting on the third year after planting.

“Many local farmers do not know and appreciate this fact so they lose out on a good income opportunity,” says Eddie Baylin of NEDF.

He adds: “Unlike other crops, coffee farming requires little management. It’s actually easy because it’s not full time. You don’t have to be there (at the farm) everyday, as long as you have a trained farmer-in-charge and farm supplies are provided on-time” For years, he and his fellow agriculturists at NEDF have helped train farmers to plant and grow coffee.

Coffee farming 101

The Philippines’ climate is really suitable for growing Robusta, which among the coffee varieties, commands the biggest demand locally. Eighty-five percent of our requirement is for Robusta coffee, the balance of 15 percent goes to Arabica, Liberica and Excelsa. Essentially, as long as Robusta get a healthy amount of sunlight (not too much shade) and are planted on land that does not get water-logged or flooded, Robusta coffee can be grown successfully and profitably.

One can grow coffee in two ways: Either from seeds or from rooted cuttings. Of the two planting methods used for propagating coffee, use of cuttings is encouraged, because cuttings need a shorter time to grow and mature and give 30 percent higher yield than coffee trees grown from seeds. Since you can get several cuttings from a “mother plant”, cuttings greatly increase the number of plants a farmer can produce in a shorter span of time.

Taking care of the coffee plant involves weeding, pruning, and fertilization to keep them healthy and productive. Insect attacks on coffee plants aren’t as prevalent as those of other crops like corn and bananas and are easily controlled and can be prevented with proper management.

From planting, it takes approximately 18 months for a coffee plant to produce its first harvest. With proper care, a coffee tree can live to 50 years so farmers can keep on harvesting for a long period of time.

“Sometimes the planters themselves are gone, but their coffee trees are still there producing berries,” Baylin jokes.

If the farmers’ coffee beans turn out to of good quality, then they can be assured of a ready buyer for their beans such as Nestle, makers of the country’s leading coffee brand Nescafe. Nestle Philippines. Inc. operates eight buying stations all over the country on top of the main buying center at the coffee factory in Cagayan de Oro City, offering direct procurement to farmers.

The Philippines is next only to Japan in the amount of coffee consumed in Asia. However, since 1997, we have already begun importing significant coffee supply from neighboring countries like Vietnam and Indonesia because of the continuous growth in local demand. If we can increase production in our coffee farms, it would help make our country less dependent on imported coffee.