THE GRIND TO TRIUMPH: A COFFEE TRANSFORMATION STORY
“Despite constant struggles—against the elements, the market, and sometimes despair—farmers always demonstrate perseverance and resilience.“
Age is no hindrance to pursuing work. As long as a person is alive, there is always hope. This belief is held by Rudy Montezo, a 60-year-old father of five and a community leader in Barangay Boheyawas, Lamitan City, Basilan. He provides for his children by farming coffee and rubber.
Over ten years ago, Rudy was a coffee farmer, but as coffee prices dropped and fewer buyers were interested due to low-quality production, he shifted to rubber farming, which offered higher prices and a more stable income.
For Rudy, making a living as a farmer is extremely challenging without an alternative source of income—especially with five children to support and the responsibility of sending them to school. Farming alone was not enough to meet their daily needs, as irregular climate patterns affected harvest yields. Due to financial difficulties, Rudy sometimes had to borrow money from friends just to buy food for his family.
Then came a ray of hope—the Bangsamoro Agri-Enterprise Program-Leveraging and Expanding Agri-aqua Production (BAEP-LEAP) in Bangsamoro project. As Rudy considered replanting coffee, the arrival of LEAP presented the perfect opportunity to bring coffee farming back. He admired the project’s focus on improving and increasing quality coffee production in Basilan. Motivated, Rudy actively joined every process, participated in trainings and exposure visits, and received basic farming tools and planting materials.
He ensured that every technique taught in training sessions was applied to his coffee farm. During his exposure visit to a coffee farm in Davao, he saw great opportunities—reliable buyers and a strong market for coffee. The visit inspired him to further improve and develop coffee farming in his community. Today, Rudy urges all coffee farmers to start producing high-quality coffee.
“We just need patience and perseverance to see the true value of our coffee. If we take care of it properly, ensure a good harvest volume, and practice correct post-harvest techniques, we can meet quality standards. Coffee has money, and coffee is life.”