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Manila Bulletin devider Opinion devider Bukidnon elder wind coffee competition; Isabela coop sells 2.5 tons of mangoes in a day

Bukidnon elder wind coffee competition; Isabela coop sells 2.5 tons of mangoes in a day

Published Jun 12, 2026 12:05 am  |  Updated Jun 11, 2026 05:00 pm
AVANT GARDENER
I interviewed two representatives from different coops, a coffee coop from Bukidnon and a mango coop from Isabela on their respective wins last weekend. Both are excellent examples of what can be achieved when coops really work.
The best coffee in the country 2026
On June 5, 2026, Gloria Lagawan of the Inhandig Tribal Multipurpose Cooperative (ITMPC) won first place at the Philippine Coffee Quality Competition 2026 (PCQC 2026) Arabica Category.
This is the second year the cooperative has joined the competition and its first time for a member to win first place, though a few members also won top places last year.
We’re happy that our coffee won the Top one because all our hard work in the community paid off, like from harvest to processing to sorting and to quality control,” ITMPC General Manager Merly Omarol Suday said in Tagalog. “We saw everyone’s effort, so we came together as a community. This is really an answered prayer for the tribe.”
First place winner Gloria Lagawan is an ITMPC board member and part of the council of elders in her community. “We’re happy because we won Top one in Arabica at PCQC. This is encouragement to all Inhandig Tribal Multipurpose Cooperative farmers. They’ve seen how we work together in the cooperative and how that has borne fruit,” she said in Bisaya, with Suday translating. “All this through prayer to Magbabaya, the supreme god. Everything we do within our community is guided by ritual and prayers, which we also pass to the next generations.”
All the coffee ITMPC brought with them sold out over the course of the Festival, with the winning lot getting auctioned off at ₱4,900 a kilo for 177 kilos.
“Nothing is impossible when everyone in the community works together,” Suday said. “We have to care for our coffee because it’s heirloom coffee. We inherited it from our ancestors, and we also planted new trees. It’s a gift for the whole community, not only for the farmers, but for everyone.”
ITMPC sells coffee through their Facebook Page. They ship nationwide.
2.5 tons of mangoes sold in a day
On June 6, the Cabagan GIFTS Agri Coop (CGAC), with the help of the Department of Agriculture-Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Division (DA-AMAD), World Food Expo (WOFEX), Greens for Good (GFG), and Food Forward Initiatives (FFI), sold 2.5 tons of mangoes to various chefs, restaurants, and private buyers at the BGC Weekend Market.
CGAC, which has 75 members, started in 2022 as the Cabagan High Value Crops Producers Association with only 17. It began its cooperation with the DA-AMAD, Department of Yrade and Industry (DTI), and Cagayan Valley Research Center (CVRC) in 2024, during a particularly excellent harvest season. “We asked them for help and in a matter of 12 hours, we had offers for three tons,” CGAC Founder and CEO Nelia Talaue said in Tagalog.
The DA connected the coop to FFI, who asked if they could deliver to Manila. “At that time, the coop didn’t have anything, not even crates or manpower,” Talaue said. “Luckily, DA-AMAD lent us a truck and CVRC lent us crates, so we were able to make the delivery. We delivered to Wildflour, Hilton, Mama Lou’s, Guevarra’s… a lot of places.”
They repeated the process in 2025, making 2026 their third year with this collaboration. “Here, it would sell for [a very low price]… But ever since our coop started, we’ve made it a point to buy at higher prices than the trader,” Talaue said. “But some farmers want quick cash, and we can’t blame them, especially the ones with big orchards… The coop can only buy what it is sure to sell.”
The coop still had to borrow a DA-AMAD truck for this year’s delivery, however, they’re very proud to be using their own crates. “They were the first things we bought with our first earnings in 2024.”
The latest delivery was a success, with Talaue reporting that she was receiving inquiries even when they were on the way home. “Our members are happy because we’ve been able to sell at a profit,” she said. “Even if we break even most of the time, just one sale where we profit is something to be happy about.”
The coop has three more delivery days scheduled this harvest season. “You have an allowance of two to three days before or after the actual 120 days to harvest,” Talie said. They’re going to be in BGC on June 13 and 27 and a yet undecided location on June 19.
These are two examples of the good that can happen when cooperatives are well run, with members and leaders working together for everyone’s benefit. They’re examples of how a small farmer can profit if they can find the right leverage through community, contacts, and government support.
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