 Our rituals, our culture is connected to this heirloom rice. The heirloom rice project is one of the seven priority projects of the Department of Agriculture in the International Rice Basics Institute. In the absence of short-term projects like the heirloom project, they could well be at risk of disappearing. This heirloom rice project is definitely a gift of the Philippines to the world. It's an happiness of Parangay, Anganad. I'm married with six children and I have also 12 grandchildren. I am the leader of the farmer here in Anganad. It is a respect to our grandparents and without them we should not be what they are, so we have to maintain the traditional rice. This research project of Ili and the Department of Agriculture are of significance because it will empower the farmers to get them organized so that they will attain the economies of scale. Hopefully, the market says that there is high demand for heirloom rice and it even commands the higher price than the rice variety that is cultivated in the Lola. So there is a great opportunity for our farmers and the affluent community to access the niche market, which caters to heirloom rice. There is an existing market and we believe that the market is even expanding. We're trying to get the so-called geographical indication for specific traditional varieties. So this is like wine appellation where you can really identify a particular variety to a specific territory where it is originating from. And this is very important for the farmers and for the consumers' life because we can know, we can trace where the products are coming from and who's growing the varieties and the location where the varieties are getting the traits that they are known for. Tourists are coming. We are actually helping the lodging in the Manawi Hotel and we are helping people who are involved in the tourism activities. We are helping them indirectly. That's why I convinced the farmers that we should also be active also and revive our custom and tradition in farming. We return back our native rice. We return back all the fishes, the delicious foods that are growing in the rice field and sell it to the visitor so that while the other people are gaining from the tourists, you are also gaining. This Aerium Rice Project is a win-win-win situation. For Erie, Erie got to learn more about these Aerium Rice varieties, particularly the traits, the unique traits that they carry to the farmers because the farmers will be getting more from their produce and they will be able to showcase their culture, their tradition to the world. And third, to the consumers because they are going to get the health benefits and other important traits that these Aerium Rice varieties can provide. It is a win for the Philippines also, for the country. The value of these Aerium varieties comes from combining them with the communities where they have been traditionally grown, the practices those communities have used for growing them, their whole culture is built around them and those Aerium varieties are an essential part of those communities, their whole life, whereas when you bring those varieties here into the gene bank, all we brought is the genetic material. We haven't got the knowledge of those communities. We haven't got the rest of the farming system that they're maintaining. We've just got the genes. What ought to happen is that we combine their knowledge with our knowledge and that would allow us to produce a package of improved varieties and improved agricultural methods that combine the best of both worlds. In the Cordillera, they own the seeds. Like you go from one family, they have a selection of seeds that were passed on to them from generation to generation and you look at them and it's like, you're looking at the gem. Every grain that is sold really goes back to the farmers because the way that our NGO and the market is set up is that there is a dividend sharing, sharing to all the stakeholders, the farmers, the NGO and the consumer. And so all of that plays into part when they sell the rice and you buy the rice at a premium price. If we lose the farmers, if we lose the terraces, if we lose all these heirloom grains, we are poor. What is Filipino food is what grows in our environment and what people do to it. I want you to feel that you're eating the terroir of this country. You want to taste the Philippines? You want to taste the food? This grew from our land. This was filled by Philippine farmers. The DNA of these grains come from our forefathers.