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BY JULIO P. YAP JR.
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Wednesday, November 8, 2017
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AN INDIGENOUS peoples (IPs) group has continued to preserve what they call as a “miracle sugarcane” variety, claiming that it has medicinal properties.
According to Felicisimo Bolongaita, president of the Asosasyon sa Katawhan sa Lamigan, Banban, ug Nabhang Nagkahiusa (AKALABANAN), his father, one of the members of the IP group called Bukidnon, was the one who was able to preserve the Malimama, a local variety of sugarcane.
The variety is endemic in the area which is being occupied by the members of the indigenous group in Barangay Ban-ban, Ayungon, Negros Oriental.
The locals claimed that the “miracle sugarcane” has the properties which can apparently help heal pneumonia, cough, kidney stone, hepatitis, and other minor ailments.
Bolongaita says that this was the reason why they continued to preserve the variety.
The rediscovery of the local sugarcane variety was made possible through the concerted efforts of the Ecological and Agricultural Development Foundation, Incorporated or EcoAgri, a vital arm of Bacolod City-based R.U. Foundry and Machine Shop Corporation (RUFMSC).
EcoAgri was able to witness how prolific is the variety in the locality of the IP group which is located in the hinterlands of Barangay Ban-ban.
Aside from the claims of the locals regarding the medicinal properties of the variety, each stalk of the “miracle sugarcane” has healthy eye buds or nodes from the top to bottom.
The locals said that when cut in ideal sizes, the nodes can be used as cane points, making the whole stalk as planting material.
This might be the reason why the variety continued to be prolific in their area.
Most of the members of the IP group cultivated the variety in their backyard, which they said that when each stalk become mature, in can be sold in the poblacion market.
They claimed that their clientele are mostly the elder residents of the municipality who continued to believe in the healing properties of the “miracle sugarcane.
Because of the importance of the variety to the indigenous group, EcoAgri has started to embark on a mission to help the locals preserve the “miracle sugarcane.”
Aside from the preserving efforts, EcoAgri will soon start training the members of the indigenous group on how to process the “miracle sugarcane” into other consumer products.
This would result to “value adding” that would in turn, help the members of the IP community in Barangay Ban-ban, which is composed of more than 200 families.
Unlike the other sugarcane varieties, the Malimama variety has a distinct taste and different color.
Each sugarcane stalk has a darker color, compared with the other varieties which are ordinarily pale.
With the corroborative efforts of EcoAgri and the local government of Ayungon, the cultivation of the “miracle sugarcane” variety in the locality will surely help boost the income of the indigenous community.
With the firm belief of the IP community in Barangay Ban-ban regarding the healing properties of the Malimama variety, it is but proper to help them maintain their legacy of having the “miracle sugarcane” in their area. (jaypeeyap@ymail.com/PN)
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