A ‘macho’ man’s journey

A ‘macho’ man’s journey

Rubisper Udal, The Philippines

The day Rubisper Udal harvested his first crop of Macho F1 sweet corn back in 2012, was a day of deep joy and pride for the farmer based in the province of Bukidnon. He remembers watching as the sacks filled up one after the other with healthy cobs. He was so thrilled that he splashed out on a celebration with buckets of fried chicken to share with his family and his team of farm hands. ‘I was delighted that day because I went from earning very little money as a part-time farm laborer to knowing I was going to make a good profit as I started growing my own vegetables,’ he says.

After years of job insecurity, Rubisper started working for a local businessman who hired him to manage his farms. Two years later, he and his wife’s godparents lent them their land so the couple could start their own farm. He settled on growing sweet corn, starting with just one kilogram of seed to plant. Even though he was impressed by East-West Seed’s bottle gourd and papaya seed varieties that were popular in the region, Rubisper saw more potential in sweet corn. ‘The price of sweet corn is better, and you can harvest in just 75 days.’

Now over a decade later, he says sweet corn has brought sweetness to his life, allowing him to turn farming into his lifeline out of poverty and toward prosperity. Today he employs a small team he affectionately calls his ‘Macho Boys’, named after his sweet corn variety, who work the fields

with him making sure the plants grow to their full potential. He’s also been able to build a house for his wife and two children and buy a car. And he’s been able to see his community benefit.

He believes that sharing farming skills and knowledge can all ultimately grow better produce to take to market. Rubisper is also now himself a financier, being able to invest in sweet corn farming on 15 hectares of land in the surrounding villages while he works his own 6 hectares of arable land.

Rubisper’s commitment to uplifting his community saw him stand for village elections a few years ago. He won the seat and jokes that people didn’t even know his name at the time because everyone just referred to him as ‘the sweet corn guy’.

In the past decade, his partnership with EWS has also seen him deepen his knowledge of farming best practices, and he’s developed more robust networks in farming communities in the country. It’s allowed him to find more innovative approaches and solutions to overcoming challenges. Through EWS, he has access to a team of scientists he can call on for expert help, like the time fall armyworms infested his fields. ‘Because the company has a love for the farmers, the farmers can also love the company,’ he says. It’s a relationship built on trust in the quality of seeds and the ongoing support from the company long after selling products.

As one of EWS’ loyal farmers, Rubisper had the opportunity to travel to agribusiness conferences and events across the Philippines. ‘Thanks to sweet corn and EWS I have had many firsts that I didn’t imagine would come true – my visit to Manila, my first flight on an airplane; my first stay in a nice hotel, and I’m looking forward to more in the future,’ he says.

But even as Rubisper looks to new milestones and successes on his horizon, he says the true meaning of success lies in knowing that his family and employees are content and doing well.

This attitude to his farming and business practice means that it’s a reg-

ular sight to find him and his men taking breaks with a basketball match in their backyard court or even going on short vacations together, bringing their family members in tow.

Rubisper is on a mission to make people aware that hard work, perseverance, patience, good planning, and learning from mistakes are all part of what become rewards for farmers. ‘Farmers make the world go round; we are very hard-working, and I want people to know that it’s a good job. Sometimes I come back from the fields, and my clothes are dirty, and maybe people look at me and judge me. But they don’t know how hard we have worked and that I’m very proud of being a farmer. If it weren’t for the farmers, there would be nothing to eat, especially during the pandemic.’

As for his beloved sweet corn, he’ll eat it prepared. Even the water from boiled corn is a tonic – a hangover cure too, he quips. It also swells his heart. But there’s nothing like the simple pleasure of biting into a boiled sweet corn cob grown in one of his fields, knowing it will fill his belly.