Fatima established and operates Novavita Integrated Farm with the help of her family and neighborhood. She dreams of a sustainable future for the farm.
Care is one of the most basic needs anyone or anything can receive. For farmer Fatima Ebanen, the value of caring is a foundation that she frequently goes back to, giving her organic farm a sound purpose.
CHOSEN PATH
Fatima Ebanen of Brgy. 6 Poblacion, Igbaras, Iloilo is a registered nurse by profession. She has served both public and civil society care facilities within the first five years of her practice. She considered herself blessed to have experienced success in the early years of her career. Her siblings, however, thought otherwise when she gave it all up and went back to Igbaras to seek a bigger purpose.
“My siblings thought I lost my mind when I gave up my stable job at the Armed Forces of the Philippines Medical Center,” Fatima amusingly recalled. “I was tired, and I was not contented.” She then proceeded to become a staff nurse in a children’s foundation in Manila and a Medical Representative for a private pharmaceutical company in Western Visayas.
When she decided to settle down with her husband and had a family, she took a job under the Nurse Deployment Program of the Department of Health to be close to home. She was assigned as a Public Health Associate to the local nutrition program. Here she saw the state of malnourished children in her community, prompting her to pursue something within her power that can help the children and her whole community: farming.
FINDING TRUE CALLING
After Fatima left her job in the health center, she still ventured into small-scale businesses of her own, allowing her network to grow within the community. It was during 2019 when the pandemic hit that she was able to address the needs of some farmers who were not able to sell their crops due to the rising cases of COVID.
“I told some farmers to bring their crops in our old house, we would take photos of it, and post them online. I would facilitate the orders for them and deliver them. In just three months, we earned about fifty thousand pesos and I was deeply motivated because not only did we help our local farmers, we also generated income from agricultural products,” tells Fatima.
The time came that COVID-19 restrictions were eased and she was able to participate in ATI Region 6’s Training of Trainers on the Production of High-Quality Inbred Rice and Seeds, and Farm Mechanization. This training convinced Fatima and her husband to fully invest in farming. She utilized their pandemic earnings for the operations of the three-hectare farmland that they purchased. She also earned her National Certificate II in Organic Agriculture under a TESDA Farm School.
During the farm and learning site development process, Fatima would often ask for guidance and help from the Lord. Seeking validation if what she is pursuing is worth all the hard work, she would pray regularly.
BREATHING NEW LIFE
Along the way, she realized that her hometown does not have a Learning Site. Her realization breathes new life to her personal goals and aspirations for her community, hence the establishment of Novavita Integrated Farm. “Novavita came from the Latin Phrase ‘Nova Vitae’, which means new life. This is my new life, my new purpose. I should not be the only one who is learning, I must share this with the community,” Fatima explained.
The facade of Novavita Integrated Farm.
“At first, I had to plant my crops. I wanted to show the farmers what we can do, because for them, to see is to believe. I grew eggplants, sweet corn, watermelon, and squash without using chemicals,” Fatima continued. Her efforts would pay off, for the Farmers Association of Barangay 6 (FAOB 6) asked for her instruction and they would have training sessions on vermicomposting. Fatima encouraged every member to have a vermicomposting facility and up until today, their crops are thriving because of their respective efforts. STAYING ORGANICA group of sixty-three, FAOB 6 under the leadership of Fatima, now runs a program with a massive vermicomposting facility and production of concoctions. Fatima emphasized that she especially encourages the women in their organization to focus on the production of organic concoctions as part of their livelihood. The men would follow suit, learning from the sessions of the women of FAOB 6. The teamwork within their association motivated Fatima to carry on with her organic efforts, and she applies their products on her farm.
Novavita Integrated Farm markets FAOB 6’s organic concoctions in support of the association.
Like any other farm, Fatima’s organic practice in Nova Vita has met major challenges. These include pests that would consume their shares in their produce. Fatima, however, observed that this situation was not as damaging as they thought it would be, as long as you are diligent and meticulous enough to manage pests. “After all, pests can’t even finish off one fruit. If there is just enough yield, you won’t lose,” justifies Fatima. Novavita has produced thirteen crops of fruit and vegetable varieties since January.
Fatima regularly monitors her crops for signs of pests and developing diseases.
In her organic practice, she recorded that there is low input cost and high profit. She emphasized that maximizing natural resources that are readily available is a perspective worth practicing. Furthermore, the real investment goes into the painstaking process of production, monitoring, and of course, time. Every two months, her farm earns an income of almost Php30,000 pesos. She used these facts to motivate her fellow FAOB 6 members who were hesitant to practice organic at first. “Organic practice is indeed difficult if you are doing it alone. However, if you have a support system and people whom you can produce together with, it is much easier and rewarding,” Fatima testifies.
ADVOCATING HEALTH AND NUTRITION
Fatima would attribute her farm organic practice to healthcare and nutrition. She knows that consuming organic products is very beneficial and she applied this to the daily lives of her family and farm staff. “My older daughter used to get sick a lot. When we moved to our farmhouse and started to incorporate our products into our daily meals, she became healthier.” Fatima also adopts community members who succumbed to alcohol and cigarettes and employs them as farm workers. Fatima cares for them by managing their health and providing interventions for their nutrition. “It is rewarding to see them healthier and happy and earning their income,” according to Fatima. She also took young farmers under her wing, training them to be productive agripreneurs. “Novavita’s advocacy is really to share and to influence, and of course practice organic farming. I am blessed to be able to apply our advocacy in our everyday life.”
Bananas are available in the farm’s dining area for all the farm workers. Fatima encourages her farmers to consume the fruit in order to manage their urge to consume a stick of cigarette.
FURTHER PURPOSE
Novavita plans to step forward and contribute to waste management through their “Basura Baylo Laswa Program (Trash in exchange for vegetables)” as a strategy. She already had a trial run of this activity, wherein people exchange pounds of their garbage for fresh produce. Fatima deemed this very productive, because people are, once again, going back to the basics and making use of what is already available. “We never run out of waste and garbage. If we could teach people to maximize what is already there and make them realize what they can earn out of these resources, our communities would survive and thrive,” dreams Fatima.
A SOLID FOUNDATION
From the ground up, Fatima dreams to ascend with her fellow farmers. The following and support that she gained from her fellow farmers are what she considers her biggest achievement and legacy so far.
Novavita’s vermicomposting facility became an income-generating opportunity for the Ebanen family.
Fatima concluded that the very core of why she ventured into organic farming is for a steady and healthy food supply for the children. “I challenge all our farmers to look back to their children and imagine them in five years. Yes, they will become lawyers and engineers and professionals, but what will sustain them if we will not pursue organic agriculture? Will they live off processed food? Will they have ample life span if what they consume is unhealthy?”
Fatima promised to go back to the basics, to nature and the ground, to build the foundation for a better and healthier future for her community.
As a mother, Fatima considers her daughters as her greatest inspiration and motivation to push forward the organic way of living.
Story by:
