Responding to government’s initiative to plant more local fresh produce, Tanna mother of four, Tangap Sam, decided to go into farming two years ago to subsidise family income and sell her produce to meet local demands.
Using five hectares of land and with the help two other women, Sam followed the call from government and planted potato, onion, pumpkin, yam, cassava on her land.
“The Department of Agriculture provided seedlings and cuttings to help me start my farm. It was not an easy at first because the job required clearing of land and planting.
“I wake up at 6am in the morning to go out to the farm. My eldest daughter who is 15 years old helps with some of the housework in the morning while I am out in the field.
“It’s a lot of sacrifice and hard work to be a farmer especially for a woman, said Sam.
Her husband, Sam Nau, who works for the Department of Agriculture in Tanna and her four children are only able to help out on weekends.
“Although farming is hard work, you reap the benefits of your hard work at harvesting time.
On a good harvest week, Sam makes VT$325,000 (US$3,005) from her yams, potato, corn and pumpkins.
“I send my yams, pumpkins, onions and potatoes to the Port Vila Central Market while the rest are sold locally in Tanna, said Sam.
Yam has fetched her more last season, bringing in a total income of VT$200, 000 (US$1,849).
The government of Vanuatu is assisting farmers like Sam to support its agri-tourism policy – supplying them with seeds to plant more local fresh produce to meet the local demand and the tourism industry.
It was revealed this week that Vanuatu’s tourism industry spent VT$1.5 billion(US$138 million) on food imports because of the lack supply from local producers.
The Vanuatu Government through the Ministry of Agriculture is working with local farmers to plant more potatoes, onions and carrots to meet local consumption and the demands of the tourism industry and possibly bring down the national food import bill.
Photo: Dept Blong Agriculture. Caption: A woman on Tanna at her potato farm