Coffee is an important part of the modern world. It is the second most traded commodity globally, second only to crude oil.

In the Philippines, many small farmers are discovering that growing coffee can be a good way to make a living. This includes the Inhandig Tribal Muti-purpose Cooperative (ITMPC), a cooperative composed of members of the Daraghuyan-Bukidnon tribe. Their chieftain, Adelina Tarino, known by the honorific Bae Inatlawan, won the Arabica category in the Kape Pilipino (KP) Green Coffee Quality Competition, a nationwide cupping competition organized by the Philippine Coffee Board, Inc. (PCBI) in 2017. She was featured in Agriculture Magazine in 2020, and was the recipient of the third AgriMovers Honors in 2022.

This year, four ITMPC representatives were on hand to receive two awards at the Philippine Coffee Quality Competition (PCQC) 2025 earlier this year.

Present were ITMPC officers, including general manager Merly Suday, ITMPC board director Jonathan “Tan” Hikan, chairman Regino Omarol, and vice president Gloria Lagawan.

Suday is the successor to Bae Inatlawan. When she was younger, the elders encouraged her to finish her studies so she could use what she learned to help their community. “So what I’ve learned from the school, I am applying now to the community, especially in the cooperative,” she explained in Taglish. “Running a cooperative requires a lot of paperwork, so I do all of that. I’m also in charge of expanding our coffee production and engaging other farmers in coffee cultivation.”

Bae Inatlawan won second place in the Arabica-Estate Farms category while Omarol won 11th place in the Arabica-Smallholder Farms category.

They are all from the Daraguyan Ancestral Domain in Mt. Kitanglad, an area that spans about 40,203.89 hectares.

“We’re very happy to receive these awards because before, coffee was just for consumption within the community. We didn’t know that coffee was very important,” Suday said. “We’re very proud. Our tribe will gain recognition through coffee. The victory of one farmer is a victory for the whole tribe.”

She explained that it took a while for members of their tribe to understand the importance of the humble crop that they took for granted. “Before, only one farmer planted coffee. Now, we have a lot of farmers engaged in coffee farming.”

Before switching to coffee, most of their tribe members planted vegetables. Aside from the higher profit, they also appreciate how coffee farming also encourages them to care for the environment through the use of natural farming methods.

“For us in the Bukidnon tribe, planting trees is a way of reforesting the barren areas,” Hikan explained in Taglish. “As coffee prices increase, more coffee trees are being planted on agricultural land, so the farmers practice diversified farming. The coffee trees also serve as soil control, and help with carbon sequestration, and provide shade for newer plants like abaca or other crops with economic benefits. It’s a big help to plant more trees than commercial vegetables or monocropping.”

As with any endeavor, coffee cultivation comes with challenges. One of these is processing. “You have to consider quality control,” Suday said. “You have to be aware of new technologies. We still process coffee the traditional way. We still follow what our elders taught us. But we need to test our coffee using new technologies. For example, we can’t afford a moisture meter. It’s difficult to compete if you don’t have the proper technology.”

“An additional challenge is the distance of the farms from the community,” Hikan added. “Because our area is mountainous, we need to walk about three hours just to process our coffee. Another one is linkages, because in the past, it was mostly middlemen who came to our area. Now, we are expanding our production, connections, and linkages not just to local but also international buyers.”

This is possible through the cooperative’s connection to various non-government organizations and local government units. Joining (and winning) competitions has also been a big help.

ITMPC sells their coffee through the Ihandig Tribal Multipurpose Cooperative Facebook Page. Interested parties can message them to inquire. They ship nationwide.

“Support coffee growers,” Suday said. “Just drinking a cup of our coffee supports our whole community, our families, our tribe, our cooperative. The coffee we produce is a gift passed down from our ancestors. It’s the inheritance they’ve given us. When you support coffee, you also support the protection of our environment.”