GO UP: COMMERCIAL INDUSTRY’S READINESS FOR THE ORGANIC VERTICAL FARMING POLICY IN DAVAO CITY, PHILIPPIN

Urban farming has been done in response to the worsening food crisis. This study assessed the readiness of Davao City’s commercial industry to implement an organic vertical farming policy by evaluating their knowledge, skills, attitudes, and existing physical resources. It also examined their willingness to participate and their potential financial contributions to preferred farming models. Employing a quantitative, descriptive-comparative, and contingent valuation design, data were gathered through face-to-face surveys with 60 respondents selected via quota and purposive sampling. Descriptive statistics, Mann-Whitney U, and Kruskal-Wallis tests were used for analysis. Findings revealed a moderate level of knowledge (73%), low skills (20.28%), high positive attitudes (85.83%), and low physical resources (19.98%), resulting in an overall low readiness level (49.77%). Only ten establishments expressed willingness to implement organic vertical farming—two preferring SNAP hydroponics and one choosing aeroponics—covering 75% and 50% of the costs, respectively. Seven respondents favored various models, including two for SNAP, two for NFT hydroponics, two for aquaponics, and one for aeroponics, but required full government support. Statistically significant differences in overall readiness were found based on the number of employees and business ownership. Additionally, years in business and ownership influenced knowledge; number of employees and company sector affected skills; type of business and ownership impacted attitudes; and number of employees influenced physical resource levels. To enhance readiness, the researchers recommend that the local government provide targeted seminars, technical training, inputs, and financial assistance to support commercial establishments in participating in organic vertical farming in Davao City.