As a result of being a student of economics around the time that Thomas Friedman's "The World is Flat" was written, I was brought up thinking that everything could and should be traded across borders, and that countries should specialise in a few things they are best at producing. In Friedman's flat world, it makes perfect sense that around 95 per cent of Hong Kong's food is imported. We don't have enough land to feed everyone, and our resources are better put in other industries.

Some would argue that as long as we, as a city, have the means to buy and ship it here, food shouldn't be a problem. With a total land mass of around 1,100 square kilometres and a population of 7.2 million and growing, we know that Hong Kong is not expected to become self-sufficient any time soon (although, with vertical farming, who knows). So, the question is: why have farms in the city?

Recently, I had the pleasure of visiting GK Enchanted Farm, a farm-stay retreat, "farm village university" and startup incubator set up by Gawad Kalinga, one of the Philippines' more prominent charities focused on "nation-building" and ending poverty.

The farm is located in Angat, in the province of Bulacan, around 1.5 hours from Manila (if the traffic is smooth, which it often isn't), in a village that used to be rife with criminals. Gawad Kalinga's founder, Antonio ("Tony") Meloto, received a donation of a parcel of land in the area, and asked a young development-minded team to build something good from the ground up.

The farm now incorporates the old village: the team built new houses for the families, the adults were given jobs on the farm, and the children now go to school, also on the farm. “Voluntourism” is on the rise, and some of the volunteers have stayed to make more long-term impacts by founding social enterprises. 

One such enterprise is Bayani Brew, which produces a range of iced teas made with inexpensive and nutritious ingredients found locally, such as lemongrass, sweet potato leaves and pandan. The basic brew was derived from a native recipe used by the mothers on the farm, who couldn't afford to buy branded, bottled iced tea for their children. By combining local, grassroots ingenuity (which Meloto calls "the genius of the poor") with expertise from abroad (many of the startups are founded by well-educated foreigners), products like Bayani Brew are hitting shelves and carts all over the Philippines. 

The farm itself uses sustainable practices, and grows everything from cocoa to watermelons, providing the farm's businesses and families, as well as the wider community, with fresh, healthy and completely traceable produce. Agricool, another of the farm's social enterprises, connects farmers to market, as well as provides guidance and mentoring to the children of farmers, ensuring they receive the necessary education. It also aims to encourage young people to become farmers by making farming “cool, smart and sexy.” 

So, what can a farm do? Provide fresh, healthy food that is good for people and the planet, provide employment, turn criminals into productive members of society, educate, incubate businesses, and even pamper (a spa is being built on the farm as we speak). GK Enchanted Farm shows that agriculture isn't just a category in GDP calculations; it's an essential cogwheel in the machine that is society.

Read more about GK Enchanted Farm here.