Trader helps farmers earn as much as MBA graduates

By Elizabeth Lolarga Philippine Daily Inquirer MANILA, Philippines—That oft-told tale of the last carabao (water buffalo) of a farming family being sold to pay for a would-be domestic helper’s airfare will soon be reversed. Dairy man Danilo V. Fausto held road shows in Singapore and Hong Kong to convince Filipino workers there to invest in their hometowns and help their respective families get back on their feet by buying carabaos and milking them for profit, literally. Author of “Dare to Dream: A Filipino Entrepreneur’s Tale of Success in Dairy Farming,” Fausto left a comfortable sinecure in banking 25 years ago when he saw he could make a bigger difference in his kababayans’ lives by engaging in dairy business. His parents used to scold him, asking him what he was doing with his life, whenever he would visit them in Nueva Ecija. One day, he bought 10 carabaos and put them in the middle of a rice field. That got him started. It is a matter of pride for Fausto to know that he and the cooperative he helped put up were there six years ahead of the Philippine Carabao Center. Other institutions came by to observe what he was doing, especially how a milk enterprise could restore peace and order. “The insurgents were no longer holding Armalites but teats, getting into the business of massaging carabao teats,” Fausto says. But his efforts seem to be a drop in the milk bucket. As of 2009, the country still imports most of its dairy requirements from New Zealand and Australia. That year, the country shipped in 1.8 billion liters of milk, an amount equivalent to $467 million. Milk is the Philippines’ second largest agricultural import. And yet, Fausto told his audience at the Management Association of the Philippines’ weekly forum at the Metropolitan Club in Makati City Thursday, “We are producing less than one percent of the demand. That means less than 40,000 liters a day.” Of the 10 million livestock (cows, carabaos and goats), only 14,405 are being milked. Meanwhile, malnourishment haunts children ages 2 to 10. Sixty-nine percent of them are malnourished. What Fausto is doing is changing farmers’ mindset “from productivity of the soil to having a cash cow.” He says he is putting up a new cult called Iglesia ni Kalabaw (Church of the Carabao) because of the great need for milk. This brings him to wonder why the local dairy industry is not within the radar of the Department of Agriculture. “We need four million dairy animals,” he says. “But the government just brings in 500 heads a year.” He also says that a farmer “does not have to plant rice because the government says so. Governments can rise or fall because of this dependence on rice.” He questions the real freshness of milk in tetrapaks sold in supermarkets and groceries. “How can you claim it’s fresh if it has storage life of from six months to a year? Our milk is gotten from the carabao in the morning, and it’s on the table on the same day.” His DVF Dairy Farm has taken matters into its hands by going into partnership with farmers and overseas Filipino workers, particularly those in Singapore. The dairy farm buys one or two carabaos, the OFW investor lets a farmer take care of it, and they have a 50-50 share of profits. With three carabaos collectively yielding eight liters of milk (each liter sells for P45) a dairy farmer’s income may reach P32,400 in 30 days. “With five liters, given the same numbers, it can be P20,250 a month.” So Fausto, who holds a master of business administration degree, is not joking when he claims that a dairy farmer, who finished Grade One, makes as much as an MBA from the Ateneo or De La Salle. When an OFW is assured that his or her family can earn as much, the overseas worker may look forward to a financially stable life back home. Also, the country stands to benefit from a full-blown dairy industry. Fausto mentions the Philippines’ proximity to major Asian cities, as opposed to New Zealand and Australia, both 12 hours away by air. This proximity allows for fresh milk, premium cheeses, yogurt and ice cream to reach their destinations at a shorter time within the cold chain. Another advantage is that the country has large, river-fed plateaus and high rainfall, enabling grass (carabaofood) to grow fast. “We have the largest grazing resource in East Asia,” Fausto says. The country also has a large rural labor force that can keep the costs of everything low. DVF Dairy Farm has a no-nonsense name for its product: Gatas ng Kalabaw (milk of the carabao). Bottles of it may be found in SM Supermarkets’ refrigerated sections where they are easily sold out. Coming soon are milk-based products like cottage cheese, ricotta and mozzarella cheese. These are all fruits of daring to dream. When in Cebu City, please visit gregmelep.com for your real estate and retirement needs. Source: Manila Bulletin

Farming family finds greener pasture in milking carabao

By Anselmo Roque
Central Luzon Desk

SAN JOSE CITY – By common rice farming standards, Salvador Tobias, 55, of Barangay Villa Joson here, can already be considered a big-time farmer as he owns and tills a five-hectare rice land.

But Tobias’ years devoted to farming were marked with seemingly endless difficulties.

His rice lands are rain-fed areas which, most often than not, are not irrigated well enough. Using irrigation pumps to supply the water needs of his rice plants is expensive due to the high cost of engine fuel. Not even his foray into vegetable farming, including onion production, helped him out of poverty.

Stuck in the farm for his family’s livelihood, Tobias and his wife Teresita were resigned that they could not provide a better future for their seven children.

But when Tobias tried raising water buffaloes, his family’s life changed. Money now comes easy and he is able to provide for the needs of his children.

Certain areas of his rice lands have been planted with grasses to feed his herd of water buffaloes.

The Philippine Carabao Center (PCC) acknowledged Tobias’ efforts and cited him this year as the agency’s “outstanding dairy farmer.”

In 2001, Tobias was among 25 farmers who formed the Simula ng Panibagong Bukas Carabao Dairy Cooperative in this city.

He attended trainings conducted by PCC for the raising of dairy water buffaloes and in the eventual dairying enterprise. That time, PCC was introducing dairy water buffaloes as a source of livelihood for rural farming families.

Tobias received from the PCC two Bulgarian Murrah buffaloes (riverine type buffaloes), which are ideal for dairying. Under the PCC’s project guideline, Tobias had to give back to the PCC the first offspring of the buffalo pair.

These buffaloes were different from the carabao, which is of the swamp-type water buffalo that is mainly used for draft power.

In 2003, Tobias reaped the benefit of carabao dairying. He was getting four to six liters of milk from each of his lactating water buffaloes.

In later years, his average milk harvest increased, getting as high as 12 liters a day per animal.

“It meant daily cash for us,” Tobias says. “I vowed then to give all my heart and energy to increasing the number of my animals and in honest-to-goodness business of dairying.

The carabao and the cow: A Filipino folktale

Through artificial insemination, which the PCC provided using extended semen from quality Murrah buffalo bulls, his herd of dairy animals grew.

He has now 21 purebred dairy water buffaloes and one crossbred, which he uses as draft animal.

Tobias was selected for the award for his practices in adhering to standards of good dairy farmers. These include proper animal management system, good physical conditions of the animals, sanitation, proper milk collection and delivery system, family participation, productivity and compliance to the PCC set of requirements.

Tobias, his wife and seven children have their shares of work for the upkeep of the animals and in the milking activity.

His four sons – Dennis, Russel, Aser and Wendell – help in taking care of the herd, in grazing them or in cutting forage for the animals, and in bathing them before they are milked.

Dennis, his eldest, has become a technician and veterinary aide through the trainings he attended. He takes charge of providing artificial insemination treatment and in other activities like pregnancy diagnosis, deworming and administering vitamins to the animals.

Tobias’ wife, three daughters and two daughters-in-law prepare the needs required before, during and after milking and in readying the milk for the milk collection by a business agent.

They also maintain cleanliness in the corral area and in updating records of the animals and their business.

“We work together. Even my youngest daughter already knew how to milk the carabaos even while she was in Grade 6,” Tobias says.

He said his two sons, who are married and with children, opted to stay in the farm where the animals are kept. The farm is some 2 km away from the family home.

“We can say that raising dairy buffaloes and dairying maintain our family bonding,” Tobias says.

At the peak of lactation period, the animals provide him a net income of P1,000 a day. There are “dry days,” when the Tobias family gets a daily income of P350.

“Carabao dairying is really a big help for us because it is providing us daily income for our expenses in the family and for our children’s school allowance,” Tobias says.

His milk produce is collected daily by an agent from the Nueva Ecija Federation of Dairy Carabao Cooperatives (Nefedco). It is bought at P35 a liter but he gets only P34 as the P1 goes to the cooperative as his savings.


Published in Philippine Daily Inquirer August 7, 2010