In its commitment to help farmers attain sustainability in social and entrepreneurial development, SM Foundation in partnership with the Local Governments of Baliwag and Pulilan, Department of Agriculture (DA), Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), as well as SM Supermalls, have come up with “Kabalikat Sa Kabuhayan” (KSK) Farmers’ Market Day.
Veronica Cunan, Baliwag SM City Public Relation Officer said on Tuesday that the event was held separately at malls in Baliwag on July 28 and July 1 in Pulilan where the KSK farmer graduates are given the opportunity to sell their homegrown fruits and vegetables at the malls.
The KSK Farmers’ Market Day which recently launched at SM malls in Baliwag and Pulilan, is considered as a strategic market exposure where farmers are given the chance to display their harvested crops for selling on pop-up booths located at the ground level of the malls.
Since the program’s establishment in 2007, SM Foundation’s Kabalikat sa Kabuhayan has evolved into one of the pillars of the SM Foundation’s CSR Programs.
Cunan said the program focuses on sustainable agriculture that aims to bring farming technologies and training to both urban and rural communities, most especially to marginalized families around the country as to create economic opportunity and food security.
She added that the training also provides input on how aspiring farmers could become entrepreneurs, amid economic challenges, and changing weather conditions.
Noel Mauricio from Municipal Agricultural and Fishery Council, and a KSK farmer graduate from Pulilan, Bulacan, expressed his joy over the project. “Natutuwa po kami dahil nagawa ng SM Foundation na kami ay mabigyan ng access sa market. Nakakatuwa sapagkat sa pamamagitan po nito ay ma-iinspire pa lalo na mag produce ng prutas at gulay ang mga magsasakang nagsipagtapos sa programa ng SM Foundation Kabalikat sa Kabuhayan o KSK” says Mauricio.
“It is such as great milestone that through the help of SM Foundation, we are able to help local farmers address the lack in marketing, one factor that makes it hard for farmers to sell their products. SM gives our farmers a chance to showcase their homegrown fruits and vegetables here at the mall. Such initiative is a big help to the community” shares Baliwag Municipal Agriculture Office Head Clemen Labao.
The Kabalikat sa Kabuhayan Farmers’ Market is open to serve fresh fruits and vegetables every Friday at SM malls in Baliwag and Pulilan until December 2022.