MALAYBALAY CITY (30 March 2026 / Bukidnon News) – Coffee farmer Robelyn L. Salido begins her day before dawn.

By 4 a.m., she is already preparing meals for her family and attending to household chores before heading to the farm. It is a routine she has followed for years.

For 15 years, she and her husband have been growing coffee—planting, nurturing, harvesting, and selling cherries. At first, this seemed enough. But over time, she realized there was more value they were not reaching.

She remembers how they started. Their seedlings were sourced informally from fellow farmers in Barangay Pigtauranan, Pangantucan, Bukidnon.

“Gi pangayo ra namo, pero tungod kay dili man siya binaging, ang uban gyud mangamatay (We planted seedlings taken from other farmers, but since they were not bagged, many did not survive.),” she recalled.

A turning point came when they joined the Bayanihan Millennium Multi-Purpose Cooperative (BMMPC). Through the encouragement of fellow members and access to support programs, Salido began to explore coffee processing.

The cooperative benefited from assistance under the Rural Agro-enterprise Partnership for Inclusive Development and Growth (RAPID Growth Project) of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Bukidnon. Members received training, as well as access to seeds, fertilizers, and tools to support both coffee production and processing.

Salido recently placed first in the Robusta category of the Northern Mindanao Regional Coffee Quality Competition (NMRCQC), held in Malaybalay City on March 16, 2026. Her entry scored 83.88 percent. It was her first time to compete in the event, which aims to identify and promote quality coffee in the region.

In the Arabica category, Manolito G. Garces of Finca De Garces secured the top spot with a score of 84.13 percent.

Salido said joining trainings was not easy at first. She was hesitant and unsure if she could keep up. Over time, she gained confidence.

As a farmer, she was used to focusing on planting, nurturing, and harvesting. Processing introduced new responsibilities: selective picking, sorting and cleaning, depulping, washing, fermenting, drying, hulling, grading, roasting, and packaging—all guided by cooperative standards.

At first, the process felt demanding. She thought it would take nearly two months before she could sell coffee beans and questioned whether the effort would be worth it. Still, she wanted to experience the full value of what they produce.

“Ni process pud ko ug kape kay gusto nako matilawan ug unsa diay ang lami sa tinanom namo nga kape,” she said.
(I decided to process coffee because I wanted to taste the flavor of the coffee we planted.)

This year, she processed her own coffee for the first time.

Joining the NMRCQC in March was, for her, a challenge. She did not expect much and even skipped the awarding ceremony, thinking a first-time entry would not place.

On March 19, she received a call informing her that she had won first place in her category.

“Na shock gyud ko kay first timer baya unya ngano na daug man ko?” she said.
(I was really shocked because I was a first-timer. Why did I win?)

She credited the support of BMMPC and DTI for her progress and expressed hope for continued support as she prepares for the Philippine Coffee Quality Competition (PCQC) scheduled from May to June this year.

She recalled that before, they did not even have pruning shears and could only afford small quantities of fertilizer. Through the support extended to their cooperative, members received 500 coffee seedlings and improved access to farm inputs.

For Salido, the recognition reflects years of work, learning, and collective effort.

“Makita nako nga nag chada na ang dagan sa among kape kay naa nay mga gamit sa among balay nga wala sauna pero karon, naa na,” she said.
(I can see that our coffee has improved because we now have tools at home that we did not have before.)

She said the competition is not just about the award, but about the journey—from being a coffee farmer to becoming a processor within a cooperative. (Text and photo contributed to BukidnonNews.Net by Rashia Mae Deva E. Paano, DTI PEO I)