Filipino Coffee Farmers Rebuild Local Coffee Industry, Regain Control Of Pricing And Production – CoffeeTalk

Coffee, once abandoned and turned into firewood by farmers in Camindangan, Sipalay City due to low prices and limited market access, has become a growing rural industry that supports more than 300 households and helps address a province-wide supply deficit. In 2020, the Camindangan Planters and Farm Workers Association (CAPFWA) shifted its focus to coffee and launched the CHICKS Area Coffee Processing and Marketing Enterprise. By 2023, prices had risen, and farmers began to see the crop as viable again. Ninety percent of CAPFWA’s members now cultivate Robusta coffee across 500 hectares scattered around southern Negros. The enterprise manages the entire supply chain from harvest to post-processing to packaging, and markets its products in Bacolod and Manila.

In 2024, the group took full operational control of a P15-million coffee processing facility funded through the Department of Agriculture’s Philippine Rural Development Project (PRDP), with support from the World Bank and the Negros Occidental provincial government. CAPFWA operates a rice mill and plans to launch a P10-million hog project to generate off-season income during non-harvest months. Coffee season in the region runs from November to January.

CapFWA’s success shows that with proper training, infrastructure, and control over pricing, coffee farming can thrive once again even in communities that once gave up on it. Arniel Canoy, a 22-year-old resident barista, learned the craft through hands-on experience and is part of a 25-member youth group that helps with harvest and processing. CAPFWA leaders plan to sponsor his formal barista training to further develop their growing brand.

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