Tuesday, October 10, 2006 Ifugao exports 2.5 tons of 'tinawon' rice
A TOTAL of 2.5 tons of "tinawon" rice (Ifugao native rice) were sold to the US.
This was an output of a close coordination with a foreign investor, the 8th Wonder Inc. of Montana, USA, said Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Officer Raymond Bahatan.
In the US, the products are labeled tinawon fancy (colored) and tinawon white and sold at US$10 a kilo, he said.
The Revitalized Indigenous Cordillera Entrepreneurs (Rice) Inc., a Philippine-based institution located in Cavite and a partner of the 8th Wonder, Inc., coordinated the shipping of the tinawon rice.
The 8th Wonder, Inc. became interested in helping the Ifugao farmers export the native rice when it came across an article in the Internet regarding the plight of the rice terraces, Bahatan said.
He added that when Mary Hensley, manager of the 8th Wonder Inc., learned that most of the rice terraces were abandoned by farmers due to meager production, she immediately contacted the Provincial Government to offer help in order to restore the terraces.
This was followed by a series of meetings and organization of farmers from the municipalities of Banaue, Hingyon, Hungduan, Kiangan and Mayoyao.
Early this year, Rice launched in Banaue a project dubbed as tinawon rice production and marketing.
Bahatan said the organization named Tinawon Growers was also able to initially export 700 kilos of the said rice variety last year. The 8th Wonder Inc. bought it at P50 per kilo, he said.
Based on the first shipment, the specie of the "imbuukan," a rice variety from the municipality of Hingyon, was easily sold. The imbuukan is among the more than 80 rice species here. It has an awn and the color of the grain is brown-red.
With its 600 members, the tinawon growers targeted to export five tons this year.
"I hope they (tinawon growers) will be able to produce the other 2.5 before the year ends," Bahatan said.
He noted that the project, which is also the One Town, One Product (Otop) of the municipalities of Banaue and Hingyon helped in a way for the farmers here to go back to the traditional way of farming and learned to value once again the rice terraces.
Since the tinawon rice is harvested on a yearly basis only, Bahatan hoped that the buying price should be increased to at least P100/kilo to boost the economic condition of the farmers. The planting season is November while harvest period is June to July.
Massive migration of Ifugao farmers to nearby provinces of Nueva Vizcaya and Isabela has been noted to seek greener pasture because their produce is not enough for the consumption of their families.
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