A  coconut  farmer  from Barangay  Basak, Guihulngan City, was  recently  chosen  as national  nominee  to  the  Gawad Saka-coconut  farming category, the Provincial Coconut Authority in Negros Oriental said yesterday.

Samuel Rison, who was in the first batch of coconut farmers who received an incentive  for  the  Participatory Coconut Planting Program,  will represent Central Visayas in the national competition in Manila, provincial manager Brendan Trasmonte of the PCA said.

Rison  runs  a  farm  in  Barangay  Basak, Guihulngan  where  he  integrated  coconut farming  to  goat raising through the  organic farming  technology.  

The local PCA office is now preparing  the  documents  needed  by  the  national  awards  committee, Trasmonte said. 

Rison  is  the   third   coconut farmer  from the province to become a  national nominee  to the Gawad  Saka Awards. The two others came from town of Bindoy and Jimalalud, and were recognized during the term of former President Corazon Aquino.

The  award  is given to farmers  in  different categories  and is aimed at  recognizing  their  exemplary  efforts  in  developing  agriculture.

Rison  said his parents  trained  them  to  cultivate  the  land  as  their  source of livelihood, and to earn a college degree.

The goats’ waste became a very useful organic fertilizers  for corn, banana  and  the  coco seed nut nursery, and that, they are now starting to adopt an organic way in mango farming, he said.

Rison said one needs hard work and love for agriculture in order to succeed in farming.*MA

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