Pilmico on World Bread Day: Bread’s transformative impact on communities
Pilmico celebrates “World Bread Day,” in support of all bakeries, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), restaurants, and others where they supply consistent high-quality flour.
Every year on October 16, the world celebrates “World Bread Day” to honor all kinds of bread around the world. A dietary staple in people’s lives for centuries, bread plays a much more significant role in the lives of those who bake bread as their primary source of livelihood.
Pilmico has been a steadfast partner of bakers since 1962. They have given out 108 bakery kits nationwide since they started distributing livelihood kits in 2016. In honor of the “World Bread Day,” Pilmico reflects on how it has helped change the lives of several people through bread.
Feeding the Future
Pilmico’s “Kutitap Feeding Program” was launched as a sustainable initiative to address malnutrition in public schools while at the same time supporting local bakeries. The program was made possible through the help of its partner bakeries, who went through technical training and received equipment from Pilmico. They provided bread to public schools within their communities.
The Kutitap Feeding Program started in Iligan City in 2015 and in Tarlac in 2018. Since then, the program has progressively evolved throughout the years. Due to the restrictions of the pandemic, it was turned into the “Kutitap Care Package,” where students received baked goods and eggs through its partner bakery, Aguila Bakeshop. Now, the program has also started incorporating meats in the meals served to the daycare students in Bamban, Tarlac.
Aside from feeding students with nutritional bread, this initiative also contributed to the success of some of our partner bakeries such as C&G Bakery from Iligan City.
Nourishing Dreams
By partnering with Pilmico for the “Kutitap Feeding Program,” C&G Bakery owned by Marlon Gecale was able to expand to three more branches in Mindanao.
Marlon C. Gecale, owner of C&G Bakery, has devoted his life to baking — from when he was a teen working as a baker to an adult owning his bakery. In between, he worked as an OFW and his passion for baking grew stronger, prompting him to have his own bakery.
After buying an oven with his first salary, Marlon and his wife spent the next five years building their small bakery while he worked abroad. In 2017, they applied to become a bakery partner for Pilmico’s “Kutitap Feeding Program.” They were determined to prove that their small bakery could fulfill the demands of the program despite their new and small bakery.
Marlon underwent a month-long training from Pilmico where he earned new technical skills in baking and new recipes which he still uses in his bakery. Since then, their bakery has grown and has been a reliable partner of Pilmico in various programs including the Iligan Community Pantry.
Today, C&G Bakery has expanded to three branches in Iligan City, Misamis Oriental, and Zamboanga del Sur.
Tinapay Ti Uno Program
Sinulatan1st Agriculture Cooperative, one of the Agrarian Reform Beneficiary Organizations (ARBO) grand winners, with Mayor Erlon C. Agustin of Camiling, Tarlac, and representatives from Pilmico.
Aside from Pilmico’s own initiatives, they have partnered with local government units such as the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) Tarlac for the “Tinapay Ti Uno” program in partnership with Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), and the Office of Congressman Jaime Cojuangco from the 1st District of Tarlac Province.
This program aims to create healthy buns using locally sourced ingredients from Agrarian Reform Beneficiary Organizations (ARBOs) and provide them to public school students in the 1st district of Tarlac. A total of eleven ARBOs participated in a bun and special bread competition where the winners will be responsible for the distribution of buns to the students.
In the competition held last May 24, 2023, three ARBOs were hailed as the grand winners: Cabayaoasan Farmer Agriculture Cooperative from Paniqui, Tarlac, Bacabac Farmers Producers Cooperative from Brgy. Bacabac, Camiling, Tarlac, and Sinulatan 1st Agriculture Cooperative from Brgy. Sinulatan 1st, Camiling, Tarlac. Each winner received a bakery livelihood package from Pilmico which included an oven, stainless steel table, bread rack, bread showcase, proofer with cover, spiral mixer, and 10 Pilmico flour sacks. In addition to the equipment, the winners will receive technical assistance and bakery management training from Pilmico as they set up their bakery business.
During the winners’ onsite bakery training in Camiling, Tarlac last October 3, it was revealed that two out of the three ARBOs have already opened their bakeries within their communities.
In celebration of “World Bread Day,” Pilmico emphasizes its unwavering commitment to providing high-quality flour that helps create nutritional bread products. “We believe in the transformative power that a simple loaf of bread can bring to people’s lives, especially those who rely on it as their main source of livelihood. Pilmico is dedicated to delivering the finest flour for the community’s bread making needs,” said Ma. Katrina Bayog, Pilmico Corporate Social Responsibility Manager.
