I FOLLOWED Nandi Dumapi Ayahao’s engaging post, last week, at the Ifugao Cyberspace Watchdog Facebook account on tourism as the best livelihood asset of Ifugao. The asset referred to here is the rice terraces, of course.
But in Ifugao, as elsewhere in the Cordillera, the rice terraces that have drawn tourists to Northern Luzon since the Second World War are slowly being abandoned by our farmers. Without the rice terraces, perhaps there are yet unexplored caves, pristine rivers, and spectacular mountain attractions that would sustain the interest of local and foreign tourists to the region. For indeed, rice terraces-tourism, spelunking, and mountain climbing along with mining provide the livelihood base for our local communities.
There were several netizens who volunteered their suggestions on how to enhance tourism in Ifugao. There is one suggestion that was not fully explored and discussed, particularly, the need to preserve and sustain the pristine condition of the rice terraces in our challenging time and age.
The suggestion was the same that confronted Mary Hensley when she decided to spend her time and resources to help the farmers for more than a decade now. It also helped her see how marketing can be a vehicle for local farmers to stay and sustain their ancestor’s rice terraces.
A decade ago, she already understood how adventurous millennials who are increasingly exploring global flavors, ethnic foods like heirloom rice, can help pay for heirloom rice as food, what it is and what it represents.
In the USA and European countries, Igorots and Filipinos who migrated to these countries are also potential markets for heirloom rice. They have to be fully tapped in this enterprise. In many instances, I heard some of them express their yearning for special ethnic food.
Global cuisine is not far behind in the preparation and serving of ethnic food to satisfy the customer’s sophisticated palate. Driven by international travel, chefs and cuisines around the globe are inspired to immerse themselves in specialty food that appeals to ethnic groups and to their main customers as well.
Ms. Hensley was the first to promote heirloom rice on a global scale and in a most meaningful manner. She came to the Cordillera, as a Peace Corps Volunteer, at a time when heirloom rice was being sold like ordinary rice, even to the National Food Authority (NFA); and, the rice terraces of the Cordillera were being abandoned by farmers as a losing venture.
In taking the cudgels to help farmers save the rice terraces as a natural and cultural legacy in the Philippines, she laid the foundation for the organization of a federated rice terraces cooperative that would carry her vision for the development and marketing of rice terraces products locally and abroad. The same vision, including the members of the cooperative, are now part of the DA’s heirloom rice cooperatives.
With the RICE Inc, as development NGO partner for the Eighth Wonder, Inc., I recall, the group went around the Cordillera region to consult with the farmers before preparing the Cordillera Heirloom Rice Project (CHRP). Later I am told that Mary consulted with a University in the USA to help her respond to the concerns of the region’s rice terraces farmers. That was the time when a marketing and development initiative, particularly the export of heirloom rice was being initiated, after consultations with the farmers, particularly on how the business will be carried out.
Many training activities were then undertaken for the farmer participants on quality food production, processing, and handling standards. These were undertaken through RICE, Inc.
The region’s marginal rice farmers, as beneficiaries of the CHRP, soon learned how to produce and process export quality rice. Such expertise has been shared by the farmers to the current handlers of the government’s heirloom rice project.
Aside from the on-location and hands-on training of farmers, Mary Hensley through the CHRP sponsored the training of agricultural technicians and farmers from the project areas abroad, particularly in India, on Sustainable Rice Intensification (SRI) on paddy rice.
Rice terraces farmers were also sponsored to participate in Slow Food Fairs in Europe, which served as venue to promote heirloom rice. Later, the chefs from Europe became interested to develop and promote heirloom rice through cooking contests and other promotional activities.
Through Ms. Hensley’s Slow Food activities, the region’s heirloom rice were included in the world’s Ark of Taste.
I could not enumerate in this article, the many ways that Ms. Hensley promoted heirloom rice and the rice terraces of the Philippines around the globe, including doing an exhibit at the White House, cooking promotions with the world’s top chefs and restaurants, and publishing heirloom rice cookery outcomes in respectable food magazines in the USA, and around the globe.
Sometime, about five years ago, the National Geographic, bannered the rice terraces of the Cordillera on its front cover. Published along with the featured photos of the rice terraces in this prominent magazine is a story written by Ms. Hensley.
In reaction to my column last week, Mary said that she is “also sad” about their withdrawing any involvement with the Cordillera heirloom rice at this time, but “it remains her wish to find a way of making heirloom rice the economic engine that it could be.”
Along with her note, Ms. Hensley sent a photo of a packet of Mountain Violet Rice from Barlig, Mountain Province. It is marketed by the Zingerman’s Bake House in Ann Arbor, Michigan, as one of the 10 Best Foods of 2017.
I searched some background information about Zingerman Bake House, and it is heartwarming to learn that they are comprised of “men and women of all ages from all over the world, each with different cultural, religious and political backgrounds, who are passionate and love great foods.”
Thus far, the nutritional knowledge, marketing and development initiatives we have on heirloom rice were borne out of Ms. Hensley’s pioneering initiatives. About five years ago, DA-CAR Regional Executive Director Marilyn Sta. Catalina has requested RICE, Inc. to furnish DA-CAR of the nutritional analysis done by Eighth Wonder Inc., in the USA. It surprised me why the Philippines has not done so all these years.
Prior to her departure from direct engagement in the development of the Cordillera rice terraces and heirloom rice, people who believe they can better duplicate Ms. Hensley’s activities have been spreading rumors and stories saying that she was shortchanging our local farmers, and making money from her activities, which is of course grossly unsubstantiated and unfair.
For the past two years, even if she is not directly engaged in the marketing of heirloom rice, Ms. Hensley continuous to promote the product, and the rice terraces of the Cordillera abroad.
I wish we were kinder to our true and real friends. By now, we would perhaps be seeing heirloom rice becoming a livelihood and income source for our rice terraces farmers and that of their communities.