During the recently concluded People-Powered Markets, President Benigno Aquino III (in barong, offering the handshake) took time to visit the booth of the Kalasag Farmers of San Jose, Nueva Ecija, who were among the first beneficiaries of the Bridging Farmers Program to the JFC Supply Chain, now called Farmer Entrepreneurship Program. The Jollibee Foundation, Catholic Relief Services Philippines (CRS) and the National Livelihood Development Corporation (NLDC) combined their efforts to establish the Farmer Entrepreneurship Program that aims to transform Filipino farmers to entrepreneurs by linking them to institutional markets, such as the Jollibee Foods Corporation (JFC). The People-Powered Markets is a two-day exhibit that showcased how private corporations and development organizations operate in the value chain to bring micro-entrepreneurs into the mainstream market.

By Rose de la Cruz

Bulb onion is not traditionally grown in Bukidnon, which is the center for corn and cattle. But because there is a ready market for big-sized red onions in Jollibee Foods Corporation (JFC), farmers from Impasugong, Bukidnon are now augmenting their annual incomes with a new crop.

"At first, my colleagues teased me endlessly about getting into onions since this crop was never raised here," said Ruben Halasan, 36, who used to plant only corn and tomatoes year round.  Ruben is one of the 90 farmers in Impasugong, organized into barangay-based small groups of 5 to 15 called clusters that facilitate efficient organizing of farm production and marketing activities.

"When our samples sent to Luzon passed the quality test of Jollibee, we were able to earn from onions in my 80 square meter patch here." In that piece of land, he was able to harvest 200 kilos, half of which was bought by Jollibee and the rest was sold in the local market.

Do you know that the hamburgers served in Jollibee not only provide superior taste and quality but also help small farmers realize their dream of better lives for their families?

One of Jollibee Foundation’s major programs aims to help small farmers to earn more and learn new technology. With the success of the pilot run of the Bridging Farmers to the JFC Supply Chain project, now called Farmer Entrepreneurship Program, Jollibee Foundation together with its major project partners, Jollibee Foods Corporation (JFC), Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and National Livelihood Development Corporation (NLDC), have agreed to expand the program in 2010 to cover more farmers in new sites. Concentrating in key products required by JFC such as onion, bell pepper, salad tomatoes and rice, the project will continue to help communities in Bukidnon and Nueva Ecija while adding new partners in Quezon and Misamis Oriental. The project provides farmers with technical assistance in the application of effective farming technologies that would ensure their reliability as suppliers. 

After years of living in a danger zone, constantly threatened by floods, the soon-to-be residents of Jollibee-Gawad Kalinga Mahay Village in Butuan City, Mindanao received a beautiful gift at the start of the year –- keys to their new homes.

On January 29, 2010 Jollibee Foundation turned over 49 houses to families who were relocated from their old residence along the Agusan Riverbanks. GK Kapitbahayan member and resident Antonio Burdeos expressed his gratitude.

"I lived in an area of the city where it is easily flooded when heavy rains pour," he said in Butuanon. "In fact as of now there is still water everywhere in our old place, due to the heavy downpour during the last few weeks. We thank God for making you an instrument so we could reach our dream to live in decent houses."