The Association of Young Agripreneurs of Ilocos Norte (AYAIN) has secured a PHP3.5-million grant from the Department of Agriculture (DA) for the procurement of two four-wheel drive tractors and one utility vehicle to boost their agri-business.

“This (grant) will benefit all members as it will lessen our production costs and we will no longer be hard up requesting for a vehicle when attending trainings [and] hauling our products to the market,” AYAIN president Marvin Xavier Vea told the Philippine News Agency on Monday.

To secure the funding under the DA’s “Enhancing Farming Efficiency in Ilocos Norte: Empowering Young Farmers Through the Provision of Farm Machinery and Logistics,” Vea said they partnered with the San Joaquin Multi-purpose Cooperative, a government-accredited civil society organization based in Sarrat town.

As part of the business development assistance program for young farmers, the DA has been helping those who want to implement their agribusiness venture through the so-called Young Farmers Challenge (YFC) Program.

Now running for three years, the DA’s YFC program, which is undertaken in collaboration with the office of Senator Imee Marcos and the Government Service Insurance System, offers financial assistance to young Filipinos who are eager to engage in new agri-fishery enterprises.

In Ilocos Norte, several young farmers like Vea have inspired other youth groups to venture into agri-fishery businesses, adopting science and technology-based and indigenous technologies in their farming activities.

At his farm, for example, Vea, a civil engineering graduate, has integrated engineering principles in his hydroponics lettuce farm and organic tilapia production.

Other young farmers in the province are also into integrated farming, producing off-season fruits and vegetables, as well as quality seedlings production and food processing. (PNA)