yKalinga farmer wins regional Young Farmer’s Challenge, gets P150k cash prize

Tabuk City, Kalinga – An yKalinga young farmer is among seven regional winners in the Young Farmers Challenge — Start-up open category, a competitive financial grant assistance program for youth who will and are already engaged in agri-fishery enterprises.

Out of 24 provincial winners in Cordillera in said competition, Mr. Jerald Encollado from Rizal, Kalinga with business enterprise "JE Dairy Farm" is the sole competitor from the province who was able to level up in the challenge.

His win guaranteed him of receiving P150,000 financial grant from the Department of Agriculture- Cordillera and is eligible to win another cash prize amounting to P300,000 if chosen as one of the top 12 Best Enterprise Implementer in the national level of the competition.

The monetary recognition will serve as additional start-up capital to pursue their proposed agri-fishery enterprise.

The proposed business enterprise by Encollado is a local farm focused on dairy goat milk and livestock production.

In an interview, the young farmer disclosed he already built a goat house and has 3 female goats in preparation for his planned agri-enterprise.

“I am planning to build an enterprise that produces quality milk and quality breed of dairy goat in the region since there are no enterprises of such kind in the municipality and in the region,” he said.

He added that with the enterprise, freshly made milk and milk by-products would be sold and made available to the community, especially to children which would eventually address problems related to health like malnutrition.

Meantime, on his win, Encollado thanked the agriculture department, and many other offices who contributed to his victory and for giving him the opportunity to showcase his skills in the field of agriculture and agri-business.

He, along with other winners from other provinces in the region, will now advance to the first phase of the national-level competition slated for Nov. 13-17, 2023.

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