About FFI

Building Bridges Between Agriculture and the Food Industry

Our Story

Farm Forward Initiatives (FFI) began in 2022 as a Corporate Social Responsibility program of the World Food Expo (WOFEX), in partnership with the Department of Agriculture's Regional Field Offices in the Cordillera Administrative Region and Ilocos Region. What started as a regional partnership has since grown organically to include farmer and fisherfolk groups from across Luzon — evolving into a dedicated organization focused on helping them become stronger, more capable participants in the food industry.

An FFI partner visiting a farmer cooperative in the Cordillera highlands

The Gap We Address

Farmer cooperatives and associations often had the legal form of a business but not the tools to act like one. Without consistent training or direct relationships with end-users, they became conduits for aid rather than independent operators — and government support, while present, was spread too thin to connect them to real buyers. The result: broken linkages between farm and table, and little trust between producers and the market.

FFI's approach is to build that trust directly — connecting farmer and fisherfolk cooperatives with the food service and manufacturing sectors through a business-to-business model, in close partnership with government frontline offices, the academe, and private industry.

Mission

To connect organized farmers and fisherfolk directly to the Food Service and Food Manufacturing Industry through training, partnerships, and market opportunities — working closely with government, the academe, and private-sector partners to build skills in business, marketing, and logistics that support sustainable farming practices.

Vision

To equip farmers and fisherfolk, through their cooperatives and associations, with direct connections to buyers — restaurants, caterers, hotels, and food manufacturers — so they earn fairer returns while giving businesses access to fresher, more reliable local produce. Through this approach, producers grow into Agripreneurs: market-ready, financially sustainable, and fully integrated into the broader market.

FFI team members meeting with a regional agricultural office

How We Work

FFI adapts its approach to what each region and community needs. In some areas, we've helped several small farmer groups federate into a single entity for marketing. In others, we work through existing Learning Sites for Agriculture (LSAs) as consolidators and trainers. Elsewhere, we help farmer groups across multiple regions consolidate for contract farming — meeting the scale that manufacturers and large buyers require, and helping smooth out the seasonal over-supply that often undercuts farmgate prices.

What We Do — Our Programs and Activities

Training

We help farmer cooperatives and associations learn to engage with industry professionals and the broader market — and to run their cooperative or association as a business. This includes the exchange of standards and information between producers and end-users, sustainable sourcing practices adapted to local geography and conditions, and managed production systems that connect farms, Learning Sites, and trading centers directly with industry practice.

Best suited for: Government agencies and organizations looking to fund or co-deliver capacity-building programs.

An FFI facilitator leading a training session with farmer cooperative members

Expertise Sharing

We apply our market expertise directly to production — helping design and utilize processing facilities, ensuring production systems align with what B2B buyers actually need, and supporting value-adding at the source to increase what farmers' products are worth before they ever reach a buyer.

Best suited for: Academic institutions, agencies, and industry bodies with technical expertise to contribute.

FFI team members working with a food processing facility to prepare product

Market Facilitation

We work with regional agriculture and fisheries offices to right-size farmer cooperatives with potential clients, manage expectations on both sides, and make use of existing local logistics — improving efficiency rather than building parallel systems from scratch.

Best suited for: Institutional buyers and food industry businesses seeking a direct, reliable local supply chain.

A chef and a farmer cooperative representative at a produce stall

Our Founding Board

FFI was founded by leaders across the food industry, hospitality, and sustainability sectors who share a commitment to building direct linkages between producers and the market.