Despite its nutritional benefits, kamote has long been stigmatized as “food for the poor” due to its low cost and ease of cultivation. You probably have heard people refer to it as a more affordable option among other meals if they’re short in money. Well, you can’t really blame them as kamote has been a staple Filipino crop for many households for a long time – saving more than just hungry people, but also connecting them together through the comfort it brings.
While others see kamote as a simple root crop, there is one woman who has harnessed its potential and has worked her way up by digging and selling golden sizes of kamote. Her story reflects that, indeed, there is ‘gold’ in farming.
Meet Aling Emelita
Not everyone sees agriculture as a profitable business venture. In fact, a lot of people, especially the youth, are discouraged to become farmers primarily because the agriculture sector in the country is not well supported by the government. But it's a different case for the likes of Aling Emelita.
Emelita Asunto Laluna, or just Aling Emelita, a 53-year old farmer, a loving wife and a mother of four from Brgy. Maganhan, Baybay City, Leyte, is the very first accredited root crop farmer from their barangay.
The start of it all
Aling Emelita first started planting rice and corn as their family’s main source of income in her younger years. She started with a piece of land that she and her husband helped cultivate, and eventually expanded it through the years. She also managed a small piggery and chicken coop to make additional incomes for the family. However, in 2013, Super Typhoon Yolanda devastated their crops and their animal cages. It was a terrible time for their family as the typhoon swept off their main source of income.
But Aling Emelita didn't lose hope and displayed determination to get back on her feet, which she managed to do over the years as her family recovered from the devastation of typhoon Yolanda.
A new door eventually opened for Aling Emelita in 2020 when she attended a Christmas party in their corn association, where a seminar was being held led by the Philippine Root Crop Research and Training Center (PhilRootCrops). Others saw it merely as a simple talk about kamote or kamoteng kahoy, but for Aling Emelita, she has just found her new source of income that will propel her to become a successful farmer in the root crop industry.
Taking notes and advice from the training and constant visitation, courtesy of the PhilRootCrops, Aling Emelita was able to purchase new lands for her root crop cultivation. From a piece of land, she was able to expand her kamote production in more areas and earned twice higher from it compared to her corn and rice production.
“Ang kanindotan lang gud sa sweet potato, less lang ang fertilizer nga imo magamit. Then ang pag atiman pud niya, basta mahuman lang nimo siya ug panguha ug si-ot nga di lang siya labong na, okay na. Sa isa ka puno, mu harvest man ka’g mga either 3 kilos per puno. So dako dako na, kay sa amo sa association namon 30 per kilo man, so sa usa ka puno naa naka’y 90 pesos.”
Supporting the Kamote value chain
Nanay Emelita’s root crops, proven to be of high quality, were even used to supply the production at the Rootcrops Processing Center in Baybay City where the famous line of products of “Baybay Delights” is being made. Once these crops are sorted by color, they will be used to make products like sweet potato ice cream, sweet potato chips and even baby food used by the local government to aid the malnutrition problem in the city. These products are then displayed at the Baybay Pasalubong Center and are even shipped nationwide in selected areas.
From a small area during her first year of planting root crops, Nanay Emilita spawned her farm into hectares which also helped her to sustain their family’s needs especially to her children who are studying in college.
From being a learner in root crop production herself, she now became a catalyst of change for her fellow farmers from different barangays such as in Igang and Hibunawan, wherein she had provided them with root crop cuttings for them to start planting on their own areas too.
When life throws you challenges, you make more kamote
Success does not come without challenges, as they say. Apart from pests like rats who chomped on her crops, there were also times that some of her kamote in the field were being stolen by passersby. But with her optimistic outlook in life, Nanay Emelita sees it as a way of helping those in need, even if it was done in an unlawful way.
The threats of El Nino have also been detrimental to Nanay Emilita’s root crops. Too much sunlight has caused some of her crops to shrink, making it less profitable.
“Ang dahon ba kanang dyutay ra kaayo human ang ila mura bag nadali sila og tiguwang tungod sa sobrang expose sa init na usahay need pa namo nga amo jud sila bisbisan para lang maka survive.”
But this has not stopped Aling Emelita from cultivating her land. She would still go out on the field, with the help of his husband and fellow farmers. They would clean and sprinkle water to the arid land manually. It’s a hardcore labor but Aling Emelita sees no signs of backing down.
“Na og init na muundang jud pud ko basin atakehon pa ta ma heat stroke. Usahay og ganahan pud ko mutrabaho naa pud koy gipalit nga beach umbrella ba, mao nay akong itugsok-tugsok para mubalhin ko og magkuan sa damo sa kanang siot ba.”
There is Gold in Farming
Nanay Emelita was hailed as the Outstanding Rootcrop Farmer of the Year during the Visayas-wide Ugmad Awards 2024 last VSU Centennial Anniversary. This distinction is given to root crop farmers in the Visayas region who have displayed commendable success in root crop cultivation, not just within their own piece of land, but whose impact transcends further to the broader community.
She will be receiving an incentive of Php 75,000.00 as part of the perks of the award. And the first thing that she wants to do once she receives the money is to have dentures so she can smile freely without feeling conspicuous of how her teeth look. She also aims to help her fellow farmers in the field and give back to the people who have helped her in attaining such a feat.
Farming is a profitable profession
Nanay Emilita revealed that back then, she never dreamed of becoming a farmer. In fact, she used to belittle the agricultural profession thinking that there is no profit in farming. She revealed that she wanted to become a teacher back then but because of financial problems, was unable to pursue this profession. Although she always dreamed of teaching children, she had no regrets of becoming a farmer because she became someone who can inspire others.
She also emphasized how important it is to follow the right methods in farming and to listen to experts. This is one of the key ingredients in her success as a root crop farmer.
“Tinood, farmer ko pero nakita nako nga niangat sab mi ba. Sunod jud ta sa itudlo sa mga mas nakakaalam nga ato para maapply nato sa atong area. Bisan man ako sa permero, ming sugal ko nga wala gyud koy experience sa pagtanom. Katong atong mga sayop na ginabuhat niadto, ato na iimprove para mas modako ang atong kita. Kay sa atong pagpananom, kumbaga learn to experience kumbaga.”
There are golden opportunities in agriculture. Just like in cultivating kamote or any other root crops, sometimes you just have to start from the ground before you make your way up.
(Originally published in AMARANTH: Beyond the Border)