The Agricultural Training Institute (ATI) in MIMAROPA successfully conducted a five-day Training on Farm Business School on Urban Agriculture, dubbed as “Innovate, Integrate, Market: Launch your Agricultural Product with Confidence” on April 20–24, 2026, at Aloha House Inc., Sta. Monica, Puerto Princesa City, Palawan.
In his pre-recorded welcome remarks, ATI-MIMAROPA Center Director Pat Andrew B. Barrientos encouraged participants to fully engage in the training and apply innovative, market-oriented approaches in their farming enterprises. He also urged them to integrate what they learned into practice and share their knowledge with fellow farmers to improve productivity and farm income.
Resource speakers from ATI-MIMAROPA, Mr. Mark Joseph D. Buñag, Development Management Officer I, and Ms. Marilyn G. Gonda, Training Specialist II, guided participants through key concepts essential to treating agriculture as a viable enterprise.
The training focused on strengthening the entrepreneurial mindset of participants through discussions on farming as a business, the farmer as an entrepreneur, and farm business profitability. Participants also learned essential tools for enterprise development, including market and marketing concepts, components of a farm business plan, benchmarking, contract farming, and record-keeping.
A key highlight of the training was an actual market survey conducted at the Puerto Princesa Public Market. During the hands-on activity, participants observed pricing trends, consumer preferences, and competitor strategies. The activity helped them better understand real market conditions and strengthened their appreciation of how agricultural products are sold in an actual marketplace.
As their final output, participants presented group farm business plans, demonstrating improved skills in planning, budgeting, and marketing their agricultural enterprises.
Ms. Jakylyn M. Gabinete of Bagalay Home Owners Community Garden in Brgy. San Pedro shared that she gained valuable insights from the training, particularly on the importance of business planning.
“Ang dami-dami kong natutunan kasi ganun pala kahalaga ang business plan. Akala ko, kapag pinlano kong magtayo ng negosyo at sinabi kong sisimulan ko na ang development, agad ko na itong sisimulan at magtatrabaho na. Yun pala, kailangan talaga ng business plan. Kaya sobrang natuwa ako dahil marami akong natutunan,” she said.
A total of 22 farmers and Agricultural Extension Workers (AEWs) participated in the training.
