Along the way

If you extend your hand in friendship and humility, you will meet the most interesting people along the way.

Today, I’ve decided to two stories. One is about a “Band of Brothers” who shows us that small guys can grow big and another is about a guy who helped us build up our small farm.

The first story is about the Sytin Brothers; Dominic, Rommel, Kenneth, and Dennis. Following the age old Chinese tradition that families must be united in business, the Sytins first established United Auctioneers Inc. They hustled and worked their way up from vendors of surplus engines, to used vehicle importers, relocated to Subic bay Freeport and ran a full pledge auction company that sold surplus cars, commercial vehicles, and heavy equipment.

Going from a sunrise to a sunset industry, the Sytins instinctively sought out new opportunities but were wise enough to stay faithful to their core strength and competencies. From importers and auctioneers, they ventured to a China made brand of commercial vehicles named FOTON.

At a time when “made in China” was considered a big risk, the Sytin Brothers defied the naysayers and did what other importers did not. They marketed the Foton brand competitively, backed it with strong and consistent advertising and developed a strong service support. While others held back, the Sytins went all out.

Such courage and commitment did not go unnoticed by Foton, which is the number one ranked global commercial vehicle manufacturer by sales. In a few short years, the Philippine distributors gained access to an even wider array of Foton products while UAI evolved into UAAGI or the United Asia Auto Group Inc.

On the 20th of October the brothers that started out small will be hosting The Foton Big Show dubbed as “The New Energy of Business”. To be featured at the show is the only Hybrid Bus made in China that operates both on electric and diesel power along with a range of Foton commercial vehicles and presentations of heavy equipment.

Yes they may have started out small but now they are in The Big Show.

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About a year ago or so, I wrote down my thoughts about going into poultry contract growing business in hopes of having a “stable” income outside of media. What started out as personal musings unexpectedly drew a number of emails and messages from people who had entered the contract growing industry and lived to tell tales of joy, heartbreak, bankruptcy and even betrayal.

I never imagined that a backyard business involved P2 to P6 million in investments where beginners in business often fold up or regret getting into it, while a very, very, few somehow manage to squeak by to make a small profit by staying within their comfort zone or capacity.

Those who tried to increase their volume after every successful harvest eventually discover that every increase in capacity brings you closer to guaranteed mortality and financial loses. I have read several stories of growers being betrayed by consolidators, feed quality and servicing being reduced in times of low prices because of smuggling, which resulted in losses for the growers.

Thanks to our many readers, I was able to avoid what would have been a financially catastrophic venture. So thanks to you all for saving my neck, and my purse, as they say.

During this journey, I met Dr. Erwin Cruz, DVM who generously reacquainted me with long forgotten concepts I learned in 40 years of being the son of a Sabungero. Doc Erwin heads his small outfit called Superior f1 Genetics, and he supplied me a sampling of his poultry breeders that originate from European lines.

Unlike other experts who have the proverbial “meter running”, Doc Erwin has consistently been generous and humble while building up weekend dreamers such as John Lesaca and myself so we can someday show that we actually made our dream farms come true.

After so many talks, meetings and farm visits, I can honestly say we have gone a long way. Starting with the Tagalog native, the backyard 45-day “Bantress” and a couple of old Kabir hens, we have established a family sized free range chicken farm featuring Doc Erwin’s European stock bred with our Asian asils, kabirs and natives.

We come close to being organic by using corn and coconut meat as our principal food source and using very little or no medicines at all. Instead of the standard antibiotic treatment, we use a sharp knife, a pressure cooker and an adobo recipe to fix the problem. We don’t cure chickens, we cook them.

In hindsight, I have truly met the most interesting people. I met “Dimas”, a “Muslim vendor” in Batangas who was kind enough to sell me several Asils and when I came back for a second purchase gave me an extra one as a gift of friendship.

In fact most of my “Joloano” roosters came from “Muslims” I made friends with along the road. From Tuguegarao, Kalibo, Zamboanga, Bacolod, Taguig, and even Pasig. After a whole year of gathering my flock and joining the club, I am reminded of what my Old Man Louie Beltran used to say: “Chicken Men all talk the same language”. Whether it’s in the pit or in the pot, chickens will always be part of Filipino life.

Incidentally, if you’re interested to know more about backyard poultry and agriculture, the annual agriculture event AGRILINK starts tomorrow at the World Trade Center in Pasay City. Doc Erwin Cruz will have his exhibit outside of WTC building where live animals are on display, and many other experts in other fields will surely be there and it’s a good place to start.

This year, I’ll be studying all about PIGS!

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In our backyard, we don’t have sick chickens, we have cooked birds.