A farm laborer, a housewife, and backyard food grower… Rosalyn Vea rooted her love for agriculture from her childhood. She was chosen as one of the beneficiaries of the Special Area for Agricultural Development (SAAD) Program in the Cordillera region.

She grew up in a family of backyard vegetable farmers in Pudtol, Apayao. When she got married to Joel Vea, her new family is still engaged in farming as their main source of income.

In 2018, they started planting rice on a one-hectare farm. However, Joel’s mother had a heart illness, causing them to mortgage the farm for Php 70,000.

Losing their livelihood was difficult but Rosalyn is optimistic that they will recover from it. As a mother of three, she strived more to sustain the needs of her children. Every cropping season, she would pander to work as a farm laborer while her husband works as a carpenter.

“Maysa nak nga ina kin farmer, detuy iti pagal-alak iti pigsa’k” [I am a mother and a farmer, this is where my strength comes from], said Rosalyn.

Just when her family needed it the most, SAAD came and tapped the Poblacion, Imelda, Alem, San Luis (PIAS) Farmer’s Association in 2020 where Rosalyn was an active member.

Each member of the group received 72 quails and 650 kilograms of layer feeds worth Php 31,250 under the Quail Egg Production Project on July 6, 2020.

Four months after the inputs were given, Rosalyn happily shared that she was able to earn Php 8,196 from selling 4,098 eggs which she sold at Php 2/piece on November 17.

“Malagip ko iti rigat mi idi mangrugi lockdown, uray igatang iti bagas arig na awan. Ngem idi nakaawat kamin iti livelihood nga agapo SAAD idi July, nabang-aran nak bilang maysa nga ina kin bilang maysa nga farmer ta adda meten iti paguyudan nu kasjay nga agkur-kurang pagsapulan mi kin makatulungak aglawlaw nu tay agkasapulan da iti quail egg nga agserbi a kanen da,” she said.

(I remember the struggle during the start of the COVID-19 lockdown, we can’t even afford to buy rice. But when we received the interventions from the SAAD program, I felt lighter as a mother and a farmer because I have an additional source of income. I am also happy to produce food for our consumers by selling quail eggs, a valuable contribution to our community as well.)

The earnings helped Rosalyn buy her family’s necessities. She was also able to purchase two cavans (100 kilograms) of rice worth Php 4,200 from September to October.

The rest of the money was used as a load allowance for her three children who attend online classes.

Rosalyn’s daily routine is collecting eggs from her backyard and selling them in her neighborhood. She gathers at least 35 eggs and earns Php 70 a day. She said that SAAD protects her family from hunger.

By sustaining her quail eggs, she believes that this will grow into a viable and sustainable business that provides income for her and the other farmers as a generous impact in pursuing one’s dreams to be an agripreneur. ###

Writer: Kathleen Faye B. Agonoy, SAAD Information Officer I