“Ti sekreto ti panagballigi ti biag ket tay ikatten tayo ti ugali tayo nga tallo nga S, sadot, sulit ken sansane-eng, (The secret to success in life is to remove our habits of laziness, passivity and making excuses)” emphasized Johnny Carillo.
At 70 years old, Mr. Carillo’s journey as a farmer began not as a chance but a necessary choice- one he had to make, as farming became his only source of income in the early years. He is a native of Macutay, Rizal, Kalinga who holds a degree in Agriculture and the current LSA Administrator of Green Valley Farm School.
Despite holding a degree in agriculture, he was first employed at a rural bank as a production technician. However, his salary at the institution was not enough to support his growing family. This led him to apply for a loan which he used to venture into agriculture, realizing the opportunities it could provide.
His Humble Beginnings
“Nag-start ak ti zero, (I started from scratch)”, Johnny recalled. He mentioned that his humble beginnings, started from scratch with no land of his own. When opportunity came, he ventured into farming through a loan of P6,000 from a rural bank, which he used to acquire small plot of land for cultivation.
As a start, he asked his brother to cultivate the land, resulting in a harvest of 100 cavans of rice. From this, Johnny received 25 cavans as his share. The result of the harvest inspired him to personally till the land.
“ Idi damo marigatan ak ta ado ti loss ko, nakaencounter ak ti problems ejay panang till ko iti land ta nagrigat talaga no agrugi ka iti scratch (I struggled a lot when I was starting because I had many losses. I encountered problems when I started cultivating the land, as it was difficult to start from scratch)”.
It wasn’t until his third cropping that his perseverance paid off. He covered his costs from his crops and finally began to see the fruits of his labor. He rented more land, growing his rice production. Eventually, his farm expanded to six hectares, and Johnny’s hard work began to attract attention.
In 1992, Johnny’s leadership and determination earned him a seat as a Sanguniang Bayan member in the municipality of Rizal. This experience fueled Johnny’s commitment to uplifting the lives of his fellow farmers. He became an organizer and leader, spearheading the formation of Makutay Multipurpose Cooperative, and helping it transform from a small organization to a thriving farmers’ cooperative.
Towards Learning Site for Agriculture
Faced with the challenges of conflicting schedules, he realized he needed to make a choice. He decided to give up both politics and his leadership responsibilities, choosing instead to dedicate his time to improving his farm. For him learning is a continuous process, so he actively seeks out various opportunities to enhance his knowledge and skills in farming.
He has joined various capability-building activities such as bookkeeping, managerial trainings, good agricultural practices and production and post-production practices. With his dedication, he was recognized as a Gawad Saka awardee in 2015.
“Para kanyak haan ngay nga umno diay nagaget ka lang, ta uray no nagaget ka no han mo metlang amo ti araramidem ket useless metlang. Sunga para kanyak mayat ngay nga ginagaget ko nga napan naki adadal ta iso ti nakasursuraak kadagijay umno nga maaramid no maipanggep iti panagtalon, (Hardwork is not enough. Even if you’re dedicated, if you don’t know what you’re doing, it’s still useless. That’s why, I consider myself fortunate for being persistent in attending trainings, as they taught me the right approaches to farming).”
Mr. Carillo also emphasized the importance of staying updated with modern farming techniques. He was one of the first in Kalinga to be certified in Good Agricultural Practices (GAP), which opened more opportunities. His farm, Green Valley Farm, was accredited as a Learning Site for Agriculture under the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Program in 2019.
This for him is a calling. Assisting farmers is his way of giving back all the support he has received from various agencies. He acknowledges that most of his products have been supported by various agencies.
Through his role as LSA, he was able to benchmark innovations and technology in rice farming, which led him to achieve an average yield of 110 cavans per hectare, compared to his previous average of 50 cavans per hectare.
Mr. Carillo is also practicing Integrated Farming System, integrating mango, rice, fishponds and other types of crops in his farm. He believes that using diverse crops enhances the productivity and sustainability of his farming operations. The integration of different plants allows efficient use of resources available in his farm.
Babaen integrated farming system, nakasigurado ak iti dadduma a pagsource outan ti kita. Nu manpay pumalpak ak ti maysa, ada ladta income ko ti dadduma nga mula, (Through the practice of integrated farming, I was able to diversify my sources of income. If one of my crops failed, I could still earn from other products).
His philosophy to success is to “ikaten ti tallo nga S- sadut, sulit ken sansane-eng (eliminate the attitude of laziness, passivity and making excuses)”. He mentioned that achieving a goal requires openness to learning, proactivity and persistence. Continuous learning, hard work, and determination have been the driving forces behind his success.
Looking ahead, he envisions himself helping his community by sharing his knowledge and skills in farming. True success is measured by the impact he creates within his community.//
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