Jollibee, DA partner to train small farmers on entrepreneurship

JOLLIBEE Foods Corp. (JFC) and the Department of Agriculture (DA) have signed a partnership to train smallholder farmers on business and entrepreneurship.

Under the partnership, fifteen DA regional field offices will receive agro-enterprise facilitators provided by JFC’s social responsibility arm, the Jollibee Group Foundation (JGF).

“Our partnership with DA is a way to help more smallholder farmers become agro-entrepreneurs and boost their economic activities,” JGF Executive Director Gisela H. Tiongson said in a statement.

The program will teach smallholder farmers to “shift their mindset and practice from being individual producers to entrepreneurs in a strong cluster linked by a common business activity.”

Course topics include production modules, supply plans, and the buyer’s comparison matrix, among others.

Since 2008, JGF’s farmer entrepreneurship program has trained over 3,000 farmers and helped 17 farmer groups become accredited suppliers of JFC.

A total of 167 agro-enterprise facilitators from 84 organizations have completed the introductory course since its rollout.

In July, JGF also launched an intermediate agro-entrepreneurship course.

“At the end of this course, participants are expected to learn how to develop an agro-enterprise plan, explore production technology vis-a-vis crop production cycle, and prepare for test marketing,” it noted.

In the second quarter, JFC’s attributable net income almost tripled to P2.79 billion from last year’s P976.71 million, driven by higher sales.

At the stock market on Wednesday, JFC shares declined by 1.29% or P3.20 to close at P244.40. — Luisa Maria Jacinta C. Jocson