Segalanya terlihat semakin cerah bagi Sunshine Farmers and Community Multipurpose Cooperative (SUFAMCO), operator Sunshine Bakery, karena koperasi berbasis komunitas di Sirawan, Toril, Davao City ini terus mengembangkan bisnisnya.
Koperasi, yang sebelumnya menerima peralatan memanggang dari TSI, Pilmico Foods dan Aboitiz Foundation, Inc., terus mengembangkan basis pelanggannya di daerah tersebut untuk roti dan kue keringnya. Seiring dengan meningkatnya permintaan produk mereka, anak perusahaan AboitizPower, Therma South, Inc. menyumbangkan alat pengiris roti 15 bilah kepada SUFAMCO pada 13 Desember 2017 lalu untuk lebih mendukung operasi mereka.
"Alat pengiris roti ini akan sangat membantu waktu produksi kami. Kami bisa memanggang hingga 12 roti dalam oven sekaligus. Waktu yang dibutuhkan dari membuat adonan, memanggang, hingga memotong roti secara manual biasanya memakan waktu hingga 3 jam. Dengan alat pengiris roti ini, kami pasti bisa mengurangi waktu produksi," ujar Solomon Gallardo, anggota SUFAMCO sekaligus pembuat roti.
Sufamco adalah koperasi mitra TSI dan Aboitiz Foundation. Koperasi ini mendirikan toko roti lokal setelah 5 anggotanya memperoleh Sertifikat Nasional (NC) II di bidang Baking dan Pastry pada Januari 2017 melalui pelatihan yang disponsori oleh Aboitiz Foundation. "Kami tidak pernah benar-benar berharap untuk membuat toko roti. Itu tidak ada dalam rencana kami sampai Aboitiz memberi kami pelatihan dan modal. Dari sana, kami melakukan yang terbaik untuk mengembangkan bisnis kami. Kami sangat berterima kasih kepada Aboitiz karena telah membantu kami," kata Menrado Intong, Ketua Sufamco. (PR)
Artikel Asli: AboitizPower
Pertanyaan yang Sering Diajukan
What does the Sunshine Bakery model demonstrate about cooperative-based livelihood development?
Sunshine Bakery demonstrates that cooperative structures can effectively translate external support into self-sustaining enterprise. The bakery generates real market revenues from community bread sales, reducing its dependence on ongoing donations after the initial capitalization phase. The cooperative model distributes both ownership and income across multiple members, ensuring that the benefits of the enterprise are shared rather than captured by a single beneficiary. The bread slicer donation accelerates the bakery’s growth trajectory by removing a production bottleneck — a targeted investment in operational efficiency rather than another round of start-up support.
Who is SUFAMCO and how did they come to operate Sunshine Bakery?
SUFAMCO — Sunshine Farmers and Community Multipurpose Cooperative — is a community-based cooperative in Sirawan, Toril, Davao City. The cooperative established Sunshine Bakery after five of its members acquired National Certificate (NC) II on Baking and Pastry in January 2017 through a training program sponsored by Aboitiz Foundation. The training and initial baking equipment were provided by TSI (Therma South, Inc., an AboitizPower subsidiary), Pilmico Foods, and Aboitiz Foundation. Sunshine Bakery was not a planned business but emerged from the training and capital support — a community initiative that grew beyond its original scope.
What was the bread slicer donation and why was it significant for operations?
AboitizPower subsidiary Therma South, Inc. donated a 15-blade bread slicer to SUFAMCO on December 13, 2017. SUFAMCO member and baker Solomon Gallardo explained that the cooperative could bake up to 12 loaves at a time, but the previous manual cutting process took approximately three hours from dough-making to bread slicing. The bread slicer was expected to significantly reduce production time — allowing the bakery to serve more customers more quickly and increasing output capacity without additional labor or raw material costs.
What did SUFAMCO Chairman Menrado Intong say about the Aboitiz Group’s role in the cooperative’s business?
SUFAMCO Chairman Menrado Intong was candid and grateful: the cooperative never actually planned to create a bakery. The idea was not in their original plans until Aboitiz provided training and capital. His statement captures the catalytic role that external support can play in community enterprise — sometimes the limiting factor is not willingness or work ethic but access to training and initial resources, which Aboitiz provided in a way that enabled SUFAMCO to envision and pursue something they had not previously considered possible.
How does this initiative fit within the broader Aboitiz Group ecosystem of CSR activities in Davao?
Therma South, Inc. (TSI) is AboitizPower’s subsidiary serving Mindanao’s power needs. As an Aboitiz Group company, TSI maintains a responsibility to invest in the livelihood of communities in its operational area. The bread slicer donation builds on TSI and Aboitiz Foundation’s earlier investments in SUFAMCO — baking equipment and NC II training — reflecting a sustained, multi-year relationship rather than a single intervention. This ongoing engagement model is consistent with how the broader Aboitiz ecosystem approaches community partnership across its various subsidiaries.
