Food Safety and Shelf Life Training: Empowering Farmers to Develop their Products
It was a warm bright Sunday when kabog millet farmers in Cebu gathered to eagerly learn about food safety and shelf life analysis. The event was organised by the Communities for Alternative Food Ecosystems Initiative (CAFEi) (through Ms. Teresa D. Ruelas) and the lecture modules were prepared by Ms. Krysthal Vasallo, a food science and agribusiness consultant, who also conducted the workshop. In total, there were 18 farmers, more than half of them were women. Most of the farmers who attended the lectures are between 46 and 60 years old, while only two participants are younger than 30 years old. This could reflect a lack of engagement in farming among young people. Perhaps, expanding the work beyond farming of kabog millet grains to include value-adding food processing and cooking of kabog will increase the interest among the younger generation to work with their elders on growing kabog millet farming into a vibrant industry.
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