Harvesting Opportunity, Growing Hope
Through initiatives such as the SM Weekend Market, SM Bagsakan, and partnerships with SM consigners, KSK creates opportunities for farmers to directly connect with consumers and earn more from their hard work.
THTROUGH the SM Foundation Kabalikat sa Kabuhayan Market Linkage Program, farmers are empowered to become agri-entrepreneurs, recognizing the hard work and determination behind every harvest.
Photographs courtesy of SM Foundation
Every Filipino home has its own version of comfort food. A simmering sinigang during rainy afternoons. A sizzling plate of ginisang gulay shared over dinner. Garlic crackling in hot oil. Onions slowly turn golden in a pan while families gather around the kitchen, waiting for a meal that feels like home.
But behind these familiar dishes are farmers whose stories are often left unseen.
Long before food reaches our tables, farmers spend months planting, watering, and protecting crops under the heat of the sun and the uncertainty of the weather. While many people only see ingredients neatly arranged in markets and grocery shelves, farmers see years of hard work, sacrifice, and hope for a harvest that can support their families.
AT the SM Weekend Market, Jenny personally connects with customers while selling vegetables harvested from her farm. The market linkage opportunities provided through the KSK Market Linkage Program helped her steadily increase her earnings and reinvest in a hydroponic lettuce system.
Agriculture remains one of the country’s most essential industries, yet many Filipino farmers still face limited market access and declining interest among younger generations.
SM Foundation’s Kabalikat sa Kabuhayan (KSK) Market Linkage Program recognizes this hard work, sacrifice, and quiet determination behind every harvest by helping farmers become agri-entrepreneurs capable of building more sustainable livelihoods for their families and communities.
ASIDE from supporting Jenny and her family’s daily needs, farming has also allowed her to build a more stable future for her son and mother.
For many farmers, finding a stable market where they can fairly sell their harvest is often the bigger challenge than producing crops. Through initiatives such as the SM Weekend Market, SM Bagsakan, and partnerships with SM consigners, KSK creates opportunities for farmers to directly connect with consumers and earn more from their hard work.
As explained by SMFI senior program manager for the Livelihood and Outreach Program Darel Colarina, the program aims to link the KSK Graduates from 2007-2025 to the different market opportunities in SM. Ultimately, they want to increase the farmers’ income by creating a long-term and sustainable market opportunities for farmers by allowing them not only to sell produce but also to build loyal customer bases over time.
