June Rey Peñafiel – How NOT To Empower Youth In Agriculture

Journalists, please be careful with your hype! 
(“Hyperbole” image[1] from Li’l But Mighty)

Especially about individual successful farmers. Now then, the digital newspaper story “Young Maguindanao Farmer Empowers Youth Via Agriculture[2]” by ANN (Author Not Named, 19 August 2021, Philippine Canadian Inquirer), has 3 lessons: (1) Journalism, (2) Empowerment, and (3) Agriculture. I’m not exaggerating!

1^st Lesson: Journalism

ANN says June Rey Peñafiel, above, a 27-year-old farmer in Maguindanao, has harvested 12 metric tons (MT)/hectare with hybrid rice SL-8H, planting seeds from the Department of Agriculture (DA) under the Hybridization Program. June Rey has been planting rice since 2013, twice a year. He has enjoyed per hectare a return on investment (ROI) of 4 times, gross income being P160,000 and gross expenses P40,000.

Yes, hybrid rice enriches him with that fantastic ROI! But that is a singular story. According to DA Hybrid Rice Program Adviser Frisco Malabanan, there are still areas that have not attained even the potential yield of 6 to 7 MT/ha[3]. Dreams that have not come true.

Consider ANN’s claim in her title: “Young Maguindanao Farmer Empowers Youth Via Agriculture” – ANN is claiming that with his continuing hybrid rice success, thereby June Rey’s triumph has demonstrated this:

All Filipino youth can be successful in agriculture by simply following June Rey and planting SL-8H hybrid rice! This is Hyperbole, and in journalism it is common to exaggerate the news. No Sir, no Ma’am! “One swallow does not make a summer” – Aristotle.

2^nd Lesson: Empowerment

With his SL-8H success story, June Rey is not thereby empowering the youth – the technology & system of cultivation of hybrid rice is already there and has not been supplied or discovered by this young farmer. Not only that – empowerment includes the ability to obtain adequate funding, proceed to production, processing, storage and marketing. And yes, the seeds he planted came from the DA – that is not personal empowerment. Claiming “sipag at tiyaga” (industry & persistence) as his own contribution to his phenomenal success is inadequate, even simplistic.

3^rd Lesson: Agriculture

No matter how rewarding, the growing of hybrid rice is not all there is to agriculture! What about multiple cropping? The choice(s) of crop(s) depend(s) on soil(s) & climate(s) in the region(s), target market(s), and competition(s).

ANN also mentions that June Rey is looking into other income opportunities via diversified farming, not only rice farming. “Diversified farming requires farm practices that will give a high ROI and, especially, needs a skillful farmer like (June Rey).” And so June Rey has in his farm a fishpond and water reservoir for irrigating his crops almost all year-round.

ANN says, “(June Rey) never doubts his capability and knowledge when it comes to farming and (some fruits) of his labor (are) in acquiring his own harvester and tractor.”

The June Rey Peñafiel narrative is very encouraging, but applauding to high heavens a single success story is ignoring the paradigms of association, cooperation and partnership in agriculture that, following Secretary of Agriculture William Dar’s national vision, we must pursue primarily.@517

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[1]https://www.lilbutmightyenglish.com/blog/hyperbole-exaggerating-to-make-a-point

[2]https://canadianinquirer.net/2021/08/young-maguindanao-farmer-empowers-youth-via-agriculture/

[3]https://www.bworldonline.com/hybrid-rice-areas-seen-yielding-up-to-12-tons-per-hectare/