Practicing organic agriculture has doubled his production since he shifted from conventional farming to organic farming six years ago Jose Felizardo Jr. of SitioTangco, Brgy. Tan-awan, Kabankalan City said yesterday at the Governor’s Hall, Provincial Capitol Building, Bacolod City.

Felizardo, who works a 7-hectare farm in Brgy. Tan-awan, said with conventional farming he used chemicals and other additives from land preparation to planting the crops but they only left him with high expenses and lesser income, until he decided to shift to organic farming in 2006 with the help of the Negros Nine Human Development Foundation Inc. of which he is a member.

However, he said, that he had to adjust to the new system but the result now gives him a yearly average income of P100,025, compared to the past 15 years when he had been earning only around P50,000 yearly.

His products are bananas, peanuts, tomatoes, eggplants, and other vegetables that he sells directly to the market, Felizardo said.

In his place, he said, there is no electricity but his produce are freshly stored in his farm which he referred to as his refrigerator.

“With organic agriculture everything found in my farm is fresh and ready to eat and when I sell them in the markets, they were always preferred by most buyers,” Felizardo said.

He also said organic farming supports the education of his children and one of them recently earned a degree in Animal Science from the Central Philippines State University-Kabankalan.

Felizardo also encouraged other local farmers to start practicing organic farming as he said it offers sustainable income without damaging the environment. It also has a high demand in the market today, he added. *LTG

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