Distributed farming, community agriculture

Around two weeks ago, the author of this weekly column was invited to be the guest speaker at a Gawad Kalinga community in Cavite. The topic was urban farming and soil-less agriculture through aquaponics and hydroponics. Naturally, questions were raised: First, why shift to urban farming? Second, why adopt soil-less farming practices?

To find out the answers, the speaker and the audience assessed the present situation of Philippine agriculture.

Traditional soil-based farming requires large tracts of land. Because land is cheaper in the provinces, that’s where the farms are located. The distance, however, poses logistic problems. This adds costs and that’s why the produce, when they arrive at city markets, are exorbitantly priced compared to their farm-to-gate values. To make matters worse, because of the travel, there’s also loss and spoilage.

And there’s also the increasingly unpredictable weather due to climate change. An image was projected on the screen for the audience to see. It was a body of water that had a vast expanse. It was the strawberry farms up north, all lost under water.

Besides these challenges, our country is also running out of farmers. Their average age is 63 years old. The average age of a Filipino is 69. The timebomb is ticking and it is set to explode in six years. We are running out of time.

FRIENDS visiting an urban farm in Quezon City.

This is why there is a growing shift to urban farming.

When adopted on a larger scale, meaning more people join in, the clusters of urban farms are formed and the overall setup becomes “distributed farming.” Backyards become small farmyards.

The appeal of this movement is undeniable. After all, if we grow the food we eat near — or literally at — the consumption point, many of the problems that distance brings are immediately solved. Logistic concerns, inflated prices, spoilage problems, supply security and food purity are all addressed.

The next challenge for urban farming, however, is the unavailability of large tracts of land that can be used in the metropolis for growing agricultural produce. And this is where soil-less agriculture (such as aquaponics and hydroponics) plays a key role.

Fresh rosemary grown at home goes well with chicken.

Unlike traditional farming, soil-less agriculture allows an urban farmer to grow more with less. For example, since the water that flows through these kinds of system is nutrient-rich, the vegetables can be spaced nearer to each other thus increasing the volume of produce per cycle. Also, since growth is faster using this technology, there can be more crop cycles on a per year basis further increasing overall yield. That’s how these water-based agricultural practices solve the lack of space problem in the cities.

Harvested basil, rosemary, chilis, mint and grape leaves from the aquaponics farm.

Admittedly, however, the initial setup will mean added costs compared to simply tilling the land and sowing seeds. One has to build a green house (or at the very least a shed with a clear roof) as well as construct the aquaponic and/or hydroponic system. The price tag can be prohibitive relative to simply sticking to traditional agricultural practices.

To solve this problem, communities can distribute amongst its members the cost of building the system. They also share in the benefits. The community farm grows what the community needs, and the community buys what the community farm grows. This sustainable practice is often called “Community Supported Agriculture” and can be adopted throughout our cities.