“We come from different ages—some are younger, some are seniors—and this diversity is good for learning,” Ms. Gina D. Salcedo of the Holy Spirit Mission Multi-Purpose Cooperative, in Alicia, Isabela, said during the Training for Rice-based Agripreneurship Development through Farm Business School for rice farmer cluster leaders of Isabela, at the Agricultural Training Institute - Regional Training Center 02 (ATI-RTC 02), San Mateo, Isabela on August 19-21, 2024.

Ms. Salcedo was part of the 30 participants who attended the first-batch of the said training. The participants were from various cooperatives in Isabela such as SADIRI Multi-Purpose Cooperative, MarDag RiceBis Cooperative, Baro a Langa ti Mannalon Agriculture Cooperative (BALMACO), Good Samaritan Multi-Purpose Cooperative, and Santiago Amos Credit Development Cooperative (SACDECO).

The participants equipped with the knowledge, skills, and right attitude on the concept and importance of rice-based FBS. They were also trained on financial literacy towards agripreneurship.

Salcedo admitted that the training was an eye-opener to her since she and her husband never gave importance on the profit side of their farm.  For her, what had happened to them was just a cycle and she thanked the ATI-RTC 02 for the training she had attended because according to her, it changed her perception on accounting and recording. She also said that she will apply what her learnings in the training and willing to share it with others.

Using a learning-by-doing approach, the Farm Business School (FBS) provides farmers an organized experience where they will learn the concepts and methods of farming as a business, put what they've learned into practice, and then assess how well their farms are doing and how well they're managing their businesses.