Social connections and smallholder vegetable farmers’ collaborative marketing strategy: The case of the small farmers association of Quirogpang in Davao City, the Philippines

In the Philippines, vegetable farmers generally have only small land holdings. Because of this, plus an apparent lack of financial capital, it is difficult for smallholder farmers to meet the large volume demands imposed by institutional buyers and wholesalers. The small volume and the large variation in quality puts smallholder farmers at a significant disadvantage when it comes to arranging transport and marketing. However, smallholder farmers can engage in collaborative cluster farming in order to meet the demands of the market and to bolster production volume. In the cluster, the farmers carry out production planning and marketing activities collectively. Utilizing the case study method and the 8-step clustering approach formulated by the Catholic Relief Services, this paper will present key success factors and several challenges faced by the Small Farmers Association of Quirogpang (SFAQ) in Marilog, Davao City, Philippines. At the same time, it will identify important institutional supports and strategies that may enhance the success of this and other clusters. The paper highlights key success factors such as the social connections shared by the cluster members and leadership. In this case, these commonalities exist because it is an area-based cluster which includes neighbours and relatives who all practice one religion and speak the same language or dialect

Factors affecting farmers’ adoption of natural farming technologies in New Albay, Maragusan, Compostela Valley, Philippines

In the Philippines, the sustainability of natural resources and the profitability of farming has become a major concern for smallholder farmers. To address these concerns, government agencies and the private sector are delivering workshops on natural farming technologies to farmers. Training includes the preparation of different concoctions such as indigenous micro-organisms (IMO), fermented fruit juice (FFJ) and fermented plant juice (FPJ), fish amino acid (FAA), oriental herbal juice (OHN) and calcium phosphate (Caphos). Other natural farm technologies include vermiculture. The products from the training are applied to the farmer’s own farms with any surplus products sold to other farmers. In Maragusan, Compostela Valley, Philippines, a group of smallholder farmers have successfully produced organic fertilizers as a result of the training provided to them. Initially, while training was provided to the group to facilitate the marketing of the fresh vegetable crops they produced, the skills learnt were readily transferable. This study discusses the development of the New Albay cluster and factors leading to its decline as a marketing cluster. This study will also explore the costs and returns associated with the application of organic fertilizer to vegetable crops in comparison to conventional farming practices. Results show that the cost of production arising from the use of natural farming technologies is lower than conventional farming

Quality performance of teachers: work environment, work attitude, and principal supervision: qualitative investigation

One of the most important factors in the face of the educational system is the quality of teachers’ performance. The goal of this study is to ascertain whether the teachers’ high-quality performance is actually impacted by the work environment, work attitude, and principal supervision. In this qualitative investigation, the Heideggerian Phenomenology design was employed. This study seeks to comprehend the phenomenon from the participant’s point of view and through their experiences. In this study, the purposive method was employed, and participants were chosen to expound on their experiences as general education teachers at PAU Excellencia Global Academy Foundation, Inc., teaching in an inclusion classroom. It has been discovered that the key to creating a positive learning environment in the classroom is workgroup encouragement, especially having good relationships with the principal. How frequently teachers must deal with unruly and aggressive students have largely defined teaching obstacles. A teacher’s perception of the supportive environment at school improved as he or she gained experience