By Alma L. Tingcang
What started out as a high
school hobby for this young man has become a thriving industry when he engaged
in the koi breeding business. Having
a father who was an agriculturist paved the way for his penchant for keeping
fishes and his interest in them became more intense when he realized that he
could gain much from it.
Raising ornamental fish,
including Koi is the No. 2 hobby in
the world, providing high profit, but second only to photography. In the
ornamental fish business, anyone can make a six figure income, not even
requiring a university degree to do it.
How it
started?
Mr. Velly Marcial Naciongayo, 36
years old, is a Bachelor of Science in Marine Transportation (BSMT) graduate
who hails from Sebucao, Dumalinao, Zamboanga del Sur. His inspiration comes
from the love of his life, Ardilyn and their two kids, Dimple, 8 years old and
Billgord,5.
“I started with only 6 breeders
which I bought from Laguna in 1996. Koi being an ornamental fish cannot be
eaten so I also raised tilapia in the
same pond for our consumption,” he recounted.
Little by little, Velly
started to develop his backyard pond to accommodate more koi and tilapia. One
advantage he saw was that mosquitoes started to vanish in the place, where
there used to be plenty since fishes eat mosquitoes.
“Farming helped me and my
family so much. Life was quite hard at that time and we could not sustain our
everyday needs. Food was scarce and I could barely provide a decent life for my
family,” Velly tearfully recalled.
However, things changed a
few years after. “In 3 months, we harvest the koi and we also have tilapia
which I sell in my store at P120/kilo. Sometimes the harvest could reach up to
400 kilos, more than enough for our needs,” he said. Koi is sold at P10 a piece
where a box containing 2,000 koi is sold at P20,000, while the big ones are
priced at P1,000 each.
Winning
the prestigious award
Little did he know that he
would reach a milestone in his life when he joined the Search for the 2013 Most
Outstanding Farmer in the Philippines organized by the Junior Chamber
International (JCI) Philippines together with the Department of Agriculture and
the Universal Harvester Inc., which he handily won. He received his award on
Nov. 15, 2013 at Makati Shangri-La.
“I am thankful to God for
all these blessings, the sponsors, JCI Phils., DA and Universal Harvester Inc.
for recognizing my efforts in koi farming, to Mayor Ace William E. Cerilles for
giving much attention to agriculture and our municipal agriculturist, Mr.
Ponciano Edano who always visits and monitors my progress, giving valuable
advices,” Velly said.
LGU
support
“There are 12 categories
of the yearly award and this is the first time that Dumalinao bagged the title.
This is once in a lifetime award. “To you Velly, you make every Dumalinaoan
proud so carry on the good deeds and continue helping others,” said the young mayor.
“Basically an agricultural
hub, our program in Dumalinao is geared on farming, applying the latest
technology so that farmers will have maximum benefit,” the good mayor explained.
Future
venture
Sebucao farmers are also
beneficiaries of the DA and Nestle Philippines joint venture of 100 hectares
coffee plantation launched last Nov. 25 through the efforts of Mayor Cerilles.
Velly is now promoting
aquatic farming, having organized the Backyard Aquatic Gardeners Association
(BAGA) with 20 members. Aside from its financial benefits, you will surely
enjoy raising fish and derive health benefits, he says.
Health
benefits
“Raising fish is
therapeutic, like a healing balm. It takes away fatigue and problems giving you
peace of mind. This is also one way to control mosquitoes,” he cited.
BAGA plans to embark on
bigger activities and, at the same time, giving back life to depleted rivers by
sowing fish fingerlings in them.
Very soon, a banana
plantation project will also start to be integrated with coffee. With banana,
coffee, and fish in town, we will soon be expecting an abundant harvest,
bringing peace and prosperity to Dumalinao. As Velly said, “For a peaceful
community, we should raise a lot of fish.” (PIA9)