While Lobo, Batangas has earned a reputation as a hotbed for mining, the municipality is likewise home to a rich marine sanctuary. Unfortunately, excessive mining has threatened this ecology, and efforts have been made to reduce Lobo’s dependence on the income from mines.
Goldilocks Foundation, in partnership with ABS-CBN Lingkod Kapamilya Foundation Inc.’s (ALKFIs) Bantay Kalikasan and Nutrition Center of the Philippines, took part in this endeavor by donating a fully-functional “Kabuhayan Bakery” located in Masaguitsit-Banalo National High School.
In order to create a ripple effect of livelihood opportunities, the bakery will be managed by the locals, who were given the appropriate training to make a variety of bread and simple pastries. These products can then be sold either on a retail or wholesale basis.
“My dream is to eradicate poverty in Lobo while keeping the environment and Lobo’s natural resources as healthy as possible,” noted ALKFI Managing Director Gina Lopez. “I hope that the teachers will teach their students how to love one another and also Mother Nature. Let us be responsible and commit to being earth warriors,” she added.
On the part of Goldilocks, the country’s number one bakeshop intends to make the Kabuhayan Bakeshop an integral part of its Foundation’s advocacy. “This is the first Kabuhayan Bakery that we launched, but it certainly won’t be the last. We hope to replicate this model in a number of key locations, and expand this program in the coming years,” said Cherry Caluya, Marketing Director of Goldilocks.
Other sponsors include Honda Motors Philippines, who donated a motorcycle to help the community in delivering bread all around the city, San Miguel Mills, and the Local Government Unit led by Lobo Municipal Mayor, Atty. Gaudioso Manalo.
For more information about the initiatives of Goldilocks Foundation, follow Goldilocks on Twitter or Instagram at @GoldilocksPH, the Goldilocks Facebook page, or at the official Goldilocks website at www.goldilocks.com.ph