PROBLEMS ENCOUNTERED

Planting

During the research, farmers were interviewed about the problems they encountered in planting the oranges up till they are ready for marketing.

One of their major problems is the weather. Oranges require a temperate climate in order to be in a good condition. These past months however, the weather in Maligcong was frequently changing making the orange fruit grow moldy. This year the harvest lessened by 30% compared to the previous harvest. This meant an increase of its regular price.

Another problem is insufficient funds that limited the use of some apparatus for the maintenance of the plant. According to Uncle Nardo (orchard owner) “Maintenance is the most important component in planting oranges.”

Harvesting & Transportation

The researchers also noticed that the harvesting and transportation of the fruits are difficult because of the following:

The road from Barangay Maligcong to the town of Bontoc is mostly ragged. Drivers often encounter some difficulty in moving the vehicle at some certain part of the way. The road is very muddy so the wheels of the jeepneys take a long time in traveling the short distance to Bontoc. Furthermore, the road hasn’t reached yet the main community so they have to hire some carriers to bring the oranges to the road.

Labor is also expensive in terms of harvesting the fruits so the harvesting of oranges takes a long time. According to the owners, they can not afford to employ many people to work because they don’t have enough money to pay their labor.

Marketing

The next step is selling the oranges in the market and in other nearby places. The owners usually deliver the oranges to their contact vendors in the market. Some farmers already have their own booth where the oranges are often sold. As of January this year, Ponkan, the most popular orange is sold at P 60 per kilogram, but it may vary because of the competition. The sweet orange is sold at about P35-50 per kilogram.

Competition

Most Maligcong farmers use organic fertilizers in nurturing their orange plants. This results to sweeter and juicier orange fruits. In spite of how natural the oranges may be, the consumers in our community perhaps don’t understand why these are more expensive than those coming from other provinces. Most people don’t still know the importance and impact of “Tangkilikin ang sariling atin.”

Sellers from Kalinga usually sell their harvested oranges here in Bontoc. They sell it at a cheaper price because they harvest the oranges even if these are not still ripe and place it in the transport truck. Kalinga is quite far so when it reaches Bontoc, the oranges are more or less looking ready for consumption.