Philippines Green Investment: High ROI with Organic Farming

Jan. 28, 2010 - PRLog -- The Philippines is known as a retirement haven for both Filipinos and non-Filipinos; retirement villages for Americans, Europeans etc. are popping up at several different locations. Investing in organic farming seems to fit perfectly in this concept.

The basic idea of setting up an organic farm boils down to the fact that the Philippines has all that is required to produce extremely high yields in agriculture; what is lacking mostly is the implementation of the latest know-how and technologies.

Organic farms (managed by a group of 'non-Filipinos') are now being planned at selected locations in the Philippines. Technical know-how for the crops is provided by foreign experts, researchers from Philippine Universities and representatives of the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Industry etc.

Will Irwin (author of books concerning expats in the Philippines) is taking a close look at this endeavor and mentions Pili nuts as one of the most promising 'money-makers'. “They can give a (net) income of $10,000 per hectare per year for up to 100 years” according to Mr. Irwin. “It is mainly an export product. The first 4 years the Pili trees do not produce a harvest but it is custom to just grow some 'quick-cash-crops' between the trees. A 50 hectare farm is in full operation now with an estimated minimum ROI of 20%.”

Also popular are honey bees for organic honey (bees increase the fruit volume with more than 30%). The demand for honey - especially organic honey - international - is huge now. And the revenues are very positive too.

The 'Brains' behind this endeavor are now working out the most profitable combination of crops, trees and possibilities. They are looking for investors and ultimately anyone would be allowed to invest in one hectare or more of the farms. This means that not only the 'bigger players' can make a profit but really any expat or retiree who has at least US$ 30,000 to invest; this provides for a nice monthly supplemental income.

The projects have full support of the Philippine Government because it’s 'Green/Eco' and brings development to rural areas; Eco-tourism included.

Local Filipino farmers are not negatively affected because most products are for export plus they benefit from the fact that the retirement villages and farms create jobs and provide non-profit support for them also.

For additional information on Green Investment or Organic Farming in the Philippines, contact Will Irwin at http://www.sibonga.com

# # #

About Will Irwin: he is the author of several books about 'Living in the Philippines' for expats and retirees. The 'Organic Farm' project is one of the subjects he is researching for his soon to be released book 'Additional Income for Expats in the Philippines'.