A former overseas Filipino worker (OFW), who returned to the Philippines after he was laid off from his job abroad, now earns hundreds of thousands per year by managing his own mushroom farming business.
Freddie Usita, 50, was a welder in Taiwan before he was laid off after the company transferred its operations to China in 2011, reported Philippine Information Agency.
He returned to his hometown in Piddig, Ilocos Norte and set up two businesses to earn a living for his family — a small quail production business and a backyard mushroom production business.
Although agriculture has always been Usita’s interest, the former OFW’s businesses failed. He attributed the failure of his businesses to his lack of knowledge on managing the business which led him to decide to enroll himself to the Marcos Agro-Industrial School under the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA).
Following his graduation from the agriculture program of the school, Usita decided to re-establish his mushroom production business, particularly oyster white mushroom and the oyster gray mushroom production, which was a success.
Today, Usita now owns Usita Mushroom Farm in Ilocos Norte and now supplies mushroom not only to the province but also neighboring provinces like Ilocos Sur and Cagayan.
Aside from mushroom production, Usita has also ventured in selling mushroom fruiting bags and production of organic fertilizer through the unsold fruiting bags.
Earning a net income of Php27,500 per month or Php330,000 per year, the former OFW was able to purchase an agricultural land and a vehicle for his business. He is also able to send his youngest child to school while his eldest finished in a reputable school in Ilocos Norte. All this without worrying about their finances as he is also able to set aside a portion of his income as savings.
Due to his success, Usita received 2016 Idols ng TESDA for Region 1 and was one of the nominees of the award in the national level.
“We have a lot of opportunities in our country, however, we only need to be more creative coupled with more patience and perseverance,” shared Usita.
