TWILIGHTS
Young couple going organic
Entrepreneurs Ramon Jr and Francine Uy
Negros Occidental is said to be the fourth largest island in the Philippines and home to more than 3.5 million people covering 5,000 square miles. Its capital is Bacolod City and here was born a new company, FRESH START.
In this Sugar City, young Ramon Uy Jr. met Francine Marañon who both fell in love with each other and their lifetime partnership came about their FRESH START, He is the son of a foundry entrepreneur while the sweet girl is a daughter from a prominent clan of sugar growers in Negros Occcidental.
Their advocacy for organic farming saw a ripe opportunity in producing organic fertilizer for big farms with the entire province making the radical shift to get away from chemicals in farming. It is almost two decades now that organic farming had been the direction of farmers in the province.
Corn produce from the farm.
And two years ago, the late Governor Joseph G. Marañon who was Francine's grandfather, endeavored to make the entire province the Organic Bowl of Asia.
This change was directed to raise consciousness among the population to create a moe sustainable farming solution. The government with the help of NGOs and private individuals is pushing for the accreditation of Ramon and Francine's business venture with the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movement (IFOAM) in 2011.
IFOAM is a group set on leading, uniting and assisting the organic movement in full diversity worldwide.
Another group focusing on Negros Island is the NISARD (Negros Island Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development Foundation) with its mission to promote, encourage, and provide support for the implementation of sustainable agriculture and rural development on Negros Island. It is through various companies like FRESH START that these groups hope to attain their objectives.
Organic lettuce is best for green salad.
FRESH START started small just like any other business endeavor. The young Uy couple gathered chicken manure and rice hulls from friend's garbage and seeking the help of friends. The pair started setting up production in 2005 with a total investment of 1.2 million pesos. Their farm stands on a two and a half acre of land with only part of it now being utilized.