City of Koronadal, South Cotabato – The women’s month celebration of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) XII was capped by a visit to the Felicidad Orchard and Garden Organics, Conel-Olympog Road, Brgy. Katanggawan, General Santos City. It is owned by the family of Mr. James Fos Reamon, and it is the first ever farm tourism site in the region accredited by the Department of Tourism (DOT) XII. It is also a partner organic institution of the Agricultural Training Institute (ATI) XII.
The NEDA XII personnel were toured around the four-hectare farm and showed the various technologies employed in the production of vegetables, fruit trees, herbs, poultry and livestock. As an organic farm, it utilizes common weeds and insect repellants, such as marigold and sylvanna to drive away harmful pests from the plants/crops.
It is also the home to six (6) international winning inventions of Mr. Reamon which are named after his children and classified into three (3), namely: aerodynamics for her daughter Gizelle, ventilations for his son Jimbo, and agricultural-related machineries and equipment for his son Rex.
The aerodynamically designed Gizelle windmill was recognized in the Philippines as the invention of the year in 1984. It is a recipient of the Presidential Gold Medal Award and World Intellectual Property Organization Gold Medal Award. In 1985, the said invention was displayed at Plovdiv, Bulgaria during the Exhibition of Young inventor’s. Gizelle windmill extracts underground water for domestic and irrigation use of the farm without the use of electricity.
Another aerodynamic invention is the “Aerodynamic Telescopic Sail” which was awarded second place in the creative research category during the CY 2010 National Inventor’s week. The sail utilizes the wings of an airplane as a sail for the ship instead of the common cloth sail.
For the ventilation, Mr. Reamon was able to produce two (2) inventions which are the Jimbo Ventilation System and Jimbo Vent 1. The Jimbo Vent 1 was invented in 1985 and received a 3rd place award for the creative research category during the CY 1985 National Inventor’s Week, while the Jimbo Ventilation System is recognized as the “Best in Engineering Design” during the CY 1989 National Inventor’s Week; 2nd placer for the Ecology contest, and was exhibited during the 24th Salon des Invention in Geneva, Switzerland in 1996. The ventilation system is installed in the farm kitchencools, the kitchen area, and thus save on electricity cost especially during summer time.
He also invented two (2) equipment for agricultural use which significantly contributed in the sustainability of organic farming. The inventions were named Rex Compost Tea Brewer and Rex Multi Task Vehicle. The brewer won 1st prize on the creative research category during the National Inventor’s week in 2005; 2nd prize for the invention category during the National Invention Contests and Exhibits in 2009 and became the Philippine’s entry during the Taipei Technology Fair in 2010.
The tea brewer is now in commercial production and is promoted by the organics advocates in the country. “With the help of the brewer farmers would be able to save millions from the importation of fertilizers and pesticides,” Mr. Reamon said. He added that, “the invention has a global potential for export production due to its unique design and the increasing importance of organic production.”
Meanwhile, the multi task vehicle won 2nd prize in the creative research category during the National Inventor’s Week in 2008. This vehicle is an ”all in one type vehicle” that can be used for planting, spraying, harvesting and transporting products and inputs from farm to warehouse area and vice-versa.
Mr. Reamon is a recipient of the “Inventor of the Year” in 1995 during the National Science and Technology Week. He is currently an active advocate of organic farming, after his retirement as airplane pilot of Cebu Pacific. He has a regular program at DXCP every Sunday from 6am to 7am. (Gwyneth Grace B. Collado/Judd Nichol L. Leonar/DRD/NEDA XII)