Cordillera Accepts #BROWN4good Challenge

In support of the national campaign dubbed #BROWN4good Challenge, the Department of Agriculture- CAR launched the said challenge at Banaue Hotel, Banaue, Ifugao on August 31, 2016 graced by DA Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol.

The social media advocacy campaign was designed to promote the consumption of unpolished brown rice to help address four major problems besetting the Filipino population including undernourishment, low income of rice farmers, rice self-sufficiency, and hunger.

The regional launching of the noble campaign was done through an exhibit featuring one of the region’s pride – the Cordillera heirloom rice varieties.

Secretary Piñol and Ifugao Governor Pedro G. Mayam-o spearheaded the opening of the exhibit through a ribbon cutting ceremony. During the activity, the brown rice featuring the Cordillera heirloom rice was highlighted to re-echo the traditions and cultures of the people in sustaining and promoting the history of protection and development of good practices in the production of heirloom rice in the rice terraces; and to encourage the consumption and enjoyment of both heirloom rice and brown rice products by the current generation.

Seventy four (74) variants of heirloom rice were displayed during the exhibit as approved by the secretary during the soft launching of the #BROWN4good Challenge #Cordillera campaign held at ATI-CAR Compound, BSU, La Trinidad, Benguet on August 10, 2016. The displayed variants of heirloom rice are part of the growing research activity of the Cordillera’s Heirloom Rice Project under the Department of Agriculture in partnership with International Rice Research Institute (IRRI).

Moreover, participants get to taste a variety of heirloom rice delicacies during a free taste activity which is part of the exhibit. These were prepared by the four cooperatives in the region namely: Benguet Heirloom Rice Farmers Agricultural Coop, Ifugao Rice Terraces Farmers Cooperative, Kalinga Rice Terraces Farmers Agricultural Cooperative and Mountain Province Heirloom Rice Farmers Agricultural Cooperative.

The campaign urged the general public to join the challenge through social media such as facebook, instagram and twitter by posting their photo promoting brown rice (Before eating brown rice, snap a photo of it) on their accounts and captioning it with #BROWN4good #Brown4GoodLife#Cordillera. They should also tag their friends and challenge them to do the same. The social media challenge ends by October 30, 2016.

Every social media account with proper hash tag is equivalent to 100 g of brown rice which will be given to chosen charities in the region by November 2016. This is in partnership with the Department of Social Welfare and Development- CAR.//