The future is farming (and under 30)

UNDERSTANDABLY, the people about to inherit our planet are anxious to do so: there will be a lot to clean up — literally — from our lands, seas, and air. However, a Forbes 30 under 30 is already taking care of what she’s about to get, and we wish her all the luck.

BusinessWorld had met Louise Mabulo a few years ago during a cooking demo in her Camariñes Sur hometown. Since then, she has been a featured honoree for Forbes Asia Under 30, was named a Young Champion of the Earth under the United Nations Environment Program, was awarded Outstanding Farmer of the Year 2018, and became a Friend of Humanity Awardee under the Friendship Ambassadors Foundation.

“Behind all these awards and achievements is a story,” said Ms. Mabulo, during a talk at the Ramon Aboitiz Foundation, Inc. — One to Tree (RAFI-OTT) Growth Mindset: Youth in Agripreneurship forum on June 30.

She received recognition for her work in her own social entrepreneurship venture, The Cacao Project, which was founded in 2016.

The Cacao Project focuses on fermented and unsweetened cacao tablea (drinking chocolate) which is made from organically grown, sun-dried, roasted, ground, and molded nibs of fermented pure cacao beans from Mindanao. It is currently available from the Cacao Project’s website.

During the talk, she brought out a chocolate bar they had made and cited chocolate’s status as one of the world’s most coveted food items. But this treat is in danger, she said. “In as little as 40 years’ time, the world could run out of chocolate, because of our current unsustainable production practices, and because of the global chocolate deficit of about 100,000 tons.”

Before that happens, The Cacao Project has planted 85,000 trees in about 85 hectares and helped find livelihood for 200 farmers, she said.

“We’re also going on to integrate our intent to create economic regenerative food sources that build food sovereignty in our country and dismantle cultural stigmas surrounding agriculture,” said Ms. Mabulo. In addition to that, she has found out that cacao trees help absorb carbon dioxide emissions, thus helping offset their carbon footprint.

“The fact is, the very people who produce our food and our luxuries and necessities are also some of the most vulnerable groups,” she said, explaining their mission to dismantle cultural stigmas surrounding agriculture.  “What we see on the ground at the moment is that our food producers are vulnerable, overworked, underpaid, and not given the recognition or respect that they deserve as pillars for providing the world with essential services that we need.

“What we truly needed was a way to enable our farmers and educate them about the value of their work and their value to the country —  and the worth of their harvest,” she continued. “The more we have the ability to support our farmers… the more we’ll be able to have access to better quality food.”

She cites three things that one can do to support farmers, and pave the way to a better future: investing and supporting local industry and produce, and dismantling negative stigmas. But then, there’s finding your niche: in a world filled with problems, apparently, there’s always at least one you can solve. “All of these gaps are opportunities for a system’s change. You’ve just got to be the person who does it and make that niche.”

Strong words for a 30 under 30, but she says, “If young people like me didn’t do something about this, then we would live in a future where decent quality food that we need for a passable quality of life would be a scarcity and a premium.” — J.L. Garcia