Try to visit the upland farmers in Cebu City and other towns in the province and you will be amazed at their ingenuity and resourcefulness. The soil is generally poor but then they are able to make their poor soil productive. If you visit Sitio Satohan in Sudlon II, a barangay some 45 kilometers from the heart of Cebu City, you will most likely meet Agapito Boizer, 36, who has been farming since he was 16 years old.

Of course you will be amazed to see how he produces heading lettuce in between big rocks in a portion of the farm that he cultivates. Of course it should not be surprising that he is so resourceful. After all, he is one of the products of the Farmer-Scientists Training Program that Dr. Romulo G. Davide started some 15 years ago. Under this training program, the ordinary farmers are trained to become more scientific in their approach to farming. They dare to experiment to find out what can be done to improve their productivity.

One of the most admirable farmers we met in Sudlon II is a lady by the name of Arlene Montejo. She cultivates just one hectare but makes a gross sale P24,000 a week for her heading lettuce. She has been supplying a major food chain with 400 kilos of heading lettuce a week at a price of P65 per kilo. The price is fixed at P65 throughout the year, a condition she and the food chain like very much. She has been selling her harvest to the same buyer for the last four years now and she has never failed to deliver. If her own harvest is short for one reason or another, she can always get from neighboring growers.

You will also admire these farmer-scientists because they can make money even from the most ordinary crop. Just like Edgardo Daogdaog of Brgy. Ubaob in Argao, Cebu. His favorite crop is camote and although the price is just P10 to P15 per kilo, he produces more than enough to sustain his family. In fact, he was able to buy a brand new multicab truck from the sale of his camote. Farmers like him are not just taught to produce a good crop, they are also taught to market what they produce.