Key insights

• 🌱 Cabbage farming in Benguet Province is a gamble due to market uncertainties and varying prices, causing farmers like Janaret to face the risk of making losses if they encounter stingy buyers.
• ❄️ The coldest months in Benguet Province, January and February, signal the maturity of cabbage plants, after five months of toiling by farmers in Buguias.
• 💰 The cabbage harvest needs to be sold at 20 pesos per kilo to break even, but unlucky sales could mean as low as 10 pesos per kilo, leading to large losses and wastage.
• 🥬 Benguet farmers are facing an oversupply of cabbage due to picky buyers, low prices, and reduced demand from importation, leading to tons of unsold cabbages being wasted.
• 🛒 Challenges in selling produce due to intermediaries and multiple steps in the selling process are adding to the struggle for farmers in Benguet.
• 💲 Farmers receive varying prices for cabbage based on quality, with transportation costs and haggling at wet markets contributing to the final selling price being lower than expected.
• 📉 Struggling with low cabbage prices, high expenses, and minimal profit, farmers like Juni face the need for another planting cycle to make ends meet.
• 👨‍🌾 Despite hardships, farmers in Buguias continue farming in hopes of a better future for their children, despite challenges with fluctuating cabbage prices, financial struggles, and debts.

Q&A

• Why do farmers in Buguias suffer financial losses and hardships?

  Farmers in Buguias are forced to leave their cabbages to rot due to low market prices, which leads to financial losses. They also face economic struggles, and there are speculations about the reasons for the price drop, with the government's inability to explain the situation.

• What motivates the farmers in Buguias to continue farming despite the hardships?

  Despite facing challenges with fluctuating cabbage prices, struggling to pay off debts, and provide for their families, farmers in Buguias continue farming in hopes of a better future for their children.

• Why do farmers in Benguet need to consider planting again given the minimal profit?

  Despite toiling for months, farmers like Juni face minimal profit due to low cabbage prices, high expenses, and struggles to cover debts. Their earnings end up being much lower than anticipated, leading to the need for another planting cycle.

• What factors contribute to the final selling price of cabbage being lower than expected?

  Farmers in Benguet sell cabbage at varying prices depending on the quality, but transportation costs and haggling at wet markets contribute to the final selling price being lower than expected. Despite the low prices, farmers have to sell to prevent wastage and mitigate losses.

• Why are farmers in Buguias forced to throw away or sell cabbages at extremely low prices?

  Farmers in Buguias are facing oversupply, reduced demand, and picky buyers, which lead to tons of unsold cabbages being wasted. They are struggling to sell their produce and are forced to throw them away or sell at extremely low prices.

• How do market uncertainties and varying prices affect cabbage farming in Benguet Province?

  Market uncertainties and varying prices make cabbage farming in Benguet Province a gamble, as farmers like Janaret face the risk of making losses if they encounter stingy buyers. The cabbage harvest needs to be sold at a certain price to break even, but unlucky sales could mean large losses.

• What are the challenges faced by cabbage farmers in Benguet Province?

  Cabbage farmers in Benguet Province face challenges such as market uncertainties, varying prices, oversupply, picky buyers, reduced demand from importation, struggle to sell produce, low selling prices, high expenses, and minimal profit.

• 00:07 Farming in Benguet Province is a gamble due to market uncertainties and varying prices for cabbage. Despite their hard work, farmers like Janaret face the risk of making losses if they encounter stingy buyers.
• 04:44 Benguet farmers are facing an oversupply of cabbage due to picky buyers, low prices, and reduced demand from importation, leading to tons of unsold cabbages being wasted. Farmers are struggling to sell their produce and are forced to throw them away or sell at extremely low prices.
• 10:34 Farmers in Benguet sell cabbage at varying prices depending on the quality, and the final selling price is often lower than expected due to transportation costs and haggling at wet markets. Despite the low prices, farmers have to sell to prevent wastage and mitigate losses.
• 14:05 Struggling with low cabbage prices, high expenses, and minimal profit, Juni's earnings end up being much lower than expected, leading to the need for another planting cycle.
• 17:48 The farmers in Buguias face challenges with fluctuating cabbage prices, struggling to pay off debts and provide for their families. Despite hardships, they continue farming in hopes of a better future for their children.
• 21:53 Farmers in Buguias suffer as they are forced to leave their cabbages to rot due to low market prices, leading to financial losses