Browsing by Author "Bontagen, Adelfa C."

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    Rapid appraisal for Ube prodcution as community-based enterprise for selected Barangays of San Gabriel, La Union
    (Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University - North La Union Campus, 2010-03) Bontagen, Adelfa C.; Villamil, Alice A.
    A study on rapid appraisal for ube production as community-based for selected barangays of San Gabriel, La Union was conducted in December 2009 to January 2010 to (1) determine the community profile; (2) appraise ube production as community-based enterprise in terms of production, support infrastructure, product, and market; (3) conduct an analysis of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats to ube production as community-based enterprise. Findings of the study revealed that the municipality of San Gabriel, La Union is mountainous with elevation that ranges from 100 to 1,500 meters above sea level with an aggregate land area of 77,553 hectares. Half (49.99%) of the land area is devoted to agricultural purposes. Specific to the pilot barangays, Barangay Polipol has an area of 589.44 hectares while Barangay Lacong has an area of 1,547.49 hectares, which are mainly devoted to agricultural purposes. Among the agricultural crops raised in these barangays is ube though on small-scale production. San Gabriel is time-bound focused on its development as indicated by its clear statements of vision, mission, goals and objectives by 2013. It has a well-placed support to agricultural development along technology transfer to farmers and agricultural entrepreneurs, physical infrastructures, and financial assistance. The rapid appraisal revealed that (1) the community people view ube production as an environmentally-friendly enterprise that requires no massive land clearing, uses locally produced organic fertilizers and other materials needed. Several farmers within the barangays of San Gabriel have been producing ube; (2) support infrastructures are available in terms of physical, technological, and financial supports to farmers; (3) ube tubers are considered chemical-free as use of farm chemicals is minimal. Ube processors are located in nearby community, which processes ube products to increase its value; (4) market outlet is not a problem as there are ready direct buyers of ube produce; and (5) sales margin for middlemen are eliminated since producers sell their products directly to processors in the locality. The SWOT analysis revealed that (1) the main strength of ube production as community-based enterprise is its relatively simple production technology and requires no complicated inputs, and is environmentally-friendly; (2) the weakness of ube production is its inability to be produced off-season; (3) ube production as a community based enterprise offers several opportunities that include high demand as an offshoot of the development of a technology for ube tubers processing into ube powder. Ube powder demand is very high both in local and international markets. Expected profits from ube tuber production are relatively high with computed return on investment (ROI) of 35.94%; and (4) the threats to ube production are the changing climate conditions and possible ube growing from other countries both in fresh and processed forms. Overall result of the rapid appraisal indicated that ube production is favorable as a community-based enterprise for San Gabriel, La Union.