Veggies, herb planting for quiet time, fulfillment

This week, the Sweet Spring Country Farm in Alfonso, Cavite will harvest about 150 kilos of romaine, green ice and redsail lettuce and assorted herbs, such as arugula, for delivery to resorts, hotels and restaurants in the tourist haven of Tagaytay.

It is a regular activity that has never failed to give Francis Pangilinan, former Presidential Assistant for Food Security and Agricultural Modernization, an intense feeling of fulfillment since he leased a roughly three-hectare property and developed a 6,000-square-meter vegetable and herb farm in 2012.

There is just something peaceful about seeing plants grow, says Pangilinan.

“I realize I am most at peace when I am in the farm planting, tending to and harvesting produce needed to sustain life. It cannot be more real and more essential than that, I suppose,” he adds.

This is why it is with a heavy heart that he has to leave most of the tending of the farm in the next few months to a caretaker and two young graduates as he will have to devote most of his time to his campaign for a Senate seat under the Liberal Party.

Pangilinan, however, says he is committed to visiting the farm as often as he can as it helps brings home the point that agriculture should be a priority sector and given the attention it deserves.

The seed of the idea to venture into farming was planted in Pangilinan in 2010, when he chaired the Senate committee on agriculture and food. He initially had very little knowledge of the sector except that the majority of Filipinos depend on agriculture for their livelihood.

Eventually, as he became better acquainted with farmers and fishermen and the challenges they regularly face, Pangilinan developed an affinity with the land.

He is most proud of the Sagip Saka program that he spearheaded and then launched in January 2011.

The advocacy aims “to achieve sustainable modern agriculture and food security by transforming agricultural communities to reach their full potential; improving farmers’ and fishers’ quality of life, and bridging gaps through public-private partnerships.”

Pangilinan syas his involvement in the Sagip Saka program brought him up close and personal with the farmers and fishermen. It developed in him a love for the land.

Thus from knowing next to nothing about farming, Pangilinan says his work in the committee brought him deeper into agri-enterprise and the conclusion was to invest in his own farm.

The 52-year-old put his money where his heart was and invested initially P500,000 in the farm. Part of the property has been purchased while another portion is being leased with an option to buy that he is now considering.

After all, farming, Pangilinan shares, has become a true passion, advocacy and source of pride.