Brillo Agri-Trading: A Case Study on Onion Trading

Practices in the New Normal

John Nomer C. Bartolome 1, Josephine Marie M. Dela Cruz 2, Nelson C. Dela Torre 3,
John Michael M. Garcia 4, Aileen June B. Rodrigo 5
Karenina B. Romualdo, PhDBA6
Department of Business Administration College of Business Administration and Accountancy,
Central Luzon State University Science City of Muñoz, Nueva Ecija, Philippines
1
bartolome.johnnomer@clsu2.edu.ph, 2delacruz.josephine@clsu2.edu.ph, 3delatorre.nelson@clsu2.edu.ph
4
garcia.johnmichael@clsu2.edu.ph, 5 rodrigo.aileen@clsu2.edu.ph
6
kb_romualdo@clsu.edu.ph

Abstract ⸻Trading among Filipinos has long
been a tradition in our culture. Since of its huge
area of agricultural land, Central Luzon has
been dubbed the Philippines' rice granary.
Nueva Ecija has been acknowledged as one of
the most important onion suppliers in the
Philippines. The researchers came up with the
notion of examining the trading practices,
production of onions and used by the business
before to the pandemic as a well-established
business in San Jose City with fifteen years of
successful operations. Brillo Agri- Trading is
one of the most successful onion trading
businesses in San Jose City. To enhance sales,
the business uses and adjusts its processes.
Furthermore, this paper conducted a case study
research design, which focuses on a specific set
of objectives. To describe Brillo Agri-profile.
To describe the traditional practices of Brillo
Agri-Trading. To identify changes in trading
practices of Brillo Agri-Trading in the new
normal. To know about the true traditional and
new normal of Marketing Mix Strategy in terms
of price, place, product and location. Also to
identify other challenges of Brillo Agri-Trading
in the trading process during pandemic in terms
of Customer, Supply, Farmers and
Transportation. As a result, the business
transactions should be made ahead of time so
that you can calculate in terms of production,
trading, and deliveries and to effectively
achieve its goals and objectives.
Keywords⸻ trading practices, onion, buying
process, consumer market, new normal
INTRODUCTION
In the Philippines onion is locally known
as “sibuyas” and is the most important
culinary ingredient. It is commonly used as
seasoning in many food preparations. In
meat, salads and vegetable dishes,
discovered that onion can be sharp and
strong or spicy. Bulb onions, such as red
creole and yellow granex are widely grown
in the Philippines from seeds, whereas
multiplier onions such as shallots and
native onion, are grown from bulbs that
produce multiple shoots, each of which
forms a bulb [1].
According to the Department of
Agriculture, onion production in the
Philippines has grown at a 4.94 percent
annual rate [2]. Central Luzon has been
considered as the rice granary of the
Philippines because of the vast acre of the
agricultural land. Nueva Ecija has been part
of the agricultural crafting and routine
especially farmers and traders in San Jose
City, Nueva Ecija.
In addition, Nueva Ecija has been
contributed as one of the major suppliers of
onions all over the Philippines, in fact
according to the IJST or International
Journal of Science and Technology (2020)
suvery, one of trusted sources in terms of
diverse field in Science, engineering and
technologies 71.5 percent of mechanization
index of onion production in the Philippine
came from Nueva Ecija. Align with that,
Nueva Ecija consider as the onion capital of
the Philippines.
Most of the municipalities and cities
in the province are involved in the
production of onions every planting season
in the month of October to December and
harvest in month of February to April. But
the production of red onion reduced by 14.8
percent, from 44.62 thousand metric tons in
the year of 2017, to 38.02 thousand metric
tons in year of 2019 [1]. The municipalities
of Bongabon, Rizal, Talavera,
Pantabangan, and the cities of San Jose and
Palayan were the province's major onion
supply areas.
These traders collected their onions
from farmers, agents, and traders outside
the province and sold them to consumers
outside the province. They also used the
storage facilities to store excess onions in
preparation for low supply levels during
lean seasons. Before reaching consumers in
Nueva Ecija, onions passed through a long
chain of participants, including farmer to
agent, agent to Advertisements,
Advertisement to retailer, and retailer to
consumer [1].
However, the recent Covd-19
pandemic has made an impact among
traders and farmers. According to the
statistical information came from the
Department of Agriculture 65 percent of the
majority in Philippines especially traders
and farmers affects their income lower on
what they gain. But Brillo Agri-Trading
despite the situations happened they still
operates and continue for the development
and growth of their business. Many farmers
are rely on them who will buy their onion
which considered as the procedures and
also the consumer of the products. The
study tries to help by providing information
how the business continue to operate
despite pandemics.
This paper conducted a case study
research design, which focuses on a specific
set of objectives. To describe Brillo Agri-
profile in terms of Trading's Name of the
Owner/s, Educational Background of the
Owner/s, Type of Business Ownership,
Years of Operation, Type/s of Market
Served (Consumer Market or Business
Market), Number of Agents, Number of
Clients (Consumer Market and Business
Market), Business Operation. To describe
the traditional practices of Brillo Agri-
Trading in terms of Onion Farmers’
Production/Farming Practices, Government
Policy and Practice, Actual Buying Process,
Number of Workers and their Role,
Machinery and Equipment, Logistics. To
identify changes in trading practices of
Brillo Agri-Trading in the new normal in
terms of Onion Farmers’
Production/Farming Practices, Government
Policy and Practice, Actual Buying Process,
Number of Workers and their Role,
Machinery and Equipment, Logistics. To
know about the true traditional and new
normal of Marketing Mix Strategy in terms
of price, place, product and location. Also
to identify other challenges of Brillo Agri-
Trading in the trading process during
pandemic in terms of Customer, Supply,
Farmers and Transportation.
LITERATURE REVIEW
The Traders play an important role
in connecting goods to the consumer and
other stakeholders. On behalf of other
participants/actors, these agents work for a
profit [3]. Without handling any product for
sale, they improve the selling and
purchasing process between producer,
wholesalers and retailers, as well as with
customers. Traders, on the other hand, often
go beyond facilitation and attempt to
regulate and set rates in order to collect
additional benefits from the process. They
are the final link between fruit and
vegetable producers and consumers. Mostly
traders are known for their restricted
capacity of purchasing and managing goods
and low financial resources. They purchase
fruits and vegetables from wholesalers and
market them to urban residents.
The market plays an important role
in determining the pattern as well as the
pace of diversification in approve of high
value crops like onion [4].increased
production is meaningless unless there is a
strong marketing system in place. India has
long been a fresh onion expoter. Both the
export quantity and the value have changed
and in some instances where production has
been particularly low, export bans have
been imposed to safeguard the interests of
domestic consumers. While large capital
requirements and the high cost of
production may sometime deter farmers,
the high prices and efficient markets can
attract farmers to produce sue crops [4]
The onion traditional marketing
channel involves a complex chain of
intermediaries between the farmer and the
consumer. Generally, [5] found that a local
onion trader will consolidate and distribute
to assemblers, who in turn supply to various
identified resellers and retailers.
In the midst of a pandemic, traders
prioritize the safety of their employees.
Local teams around the world have closely
followed health authorities' guidance to
protect the health and safety of employees
in offices, production, distribution, and
retail facilities. The trade firm has asked the
majority of office-based employees to work
remotely, in accordance with
recommendations to reduce large
gatherings and increase social distancing.
Nonetheless, trade firms are taking extra
precautions to ensure that products are
handled in a cleaner manner at every stage,
from production plants to customer outlets.
This includes providing alcohol wipes and
hand sanitizers to employees, installing
temperature screening in certain offices,
and establishing health monitoring
mechanisms in affected areas. These
safeguards not only protect their customers
and consumers, but also their employees.
They maintain business continuity plans to
address any supply chain challenges that
may arise in order to ensure the availability
of our products [6].
METHODOLOGY
The Research was carried out in the
barangay of Kaliwanagan in San Jose City,
Nueva Ecija using a responder from Brillo
Agri-Trading.
In order to gather information about
the current situation, the researcher used the
descriptive method and qualitative
approaches. [7] Descriptive research is
define as the process of gathering, data
about current conditions, practices, beliefs,
processes and trends
A descriptive type of research
according [7] involves the collection of data
to answer questions concerning the current
status of the subjects in the study. It is
intended to collect information or
conditions existing at a specific period of
time. The focus of the whole process is on
the discovery of theory on comparison or
contrast of the findings with regards to the
traditional and the new normal practices of
Brillo-Agri Trading.
The researcher utilized a semi-
structure form of survey questionnaire
(consists of checklist, likert scale, and
open-end questionnaires) as an instrument
to collect qualitative data in order to obtain
related information about the issue.
RESULT AND DISCUSSIONS
Profile of the business
The research was able to collect the
necessary and detailed information
regarding the company's profile. Mr. Tom
G. Brillo, a 48 years old, college graduate,
is the proprietor of Brillo Agri-Trading. His
business is based at Barangay Kaliwanagan,
No. 32, Zone 3, San Jose City, Nueva Ecija.
It began in the year 2006 as a sole
proprietorship and now operates as a
wholesaler and retailer. In addition, the
business has a team of more than ten
officers. More than 200 farmers are clients
in the industry sector, while more than 300
farmers are clients in the consumer market.
From September to April, the company is
open for business.
Traditional trading practices of Brillo
Agri Trading
Brillo Agri-Trading in traditional
operations. Onion growers are first in the
industry. Onion seeds are planted for four
(4) to six (6) weeks and fertilized it three (3)
times. While in policies and activities of the
government the Brillo Agri Trading
business has all of the required permits and
licenses, as well as a clean and safe working
environment that complies with the Fair
Labor Standards Act. In actual buying
process the buyer is more likely to purchase
in the months of February, March, and
April, and is most likely to buy with the
intention of sale. Brillo Agri Trading often
has a specific provider or farmers who
supply goods to business. The owner also
mentioned, the price of an onion is
influenced by price dictates, which are
based on needs and the rule of supply and
demand. Brillo Agri-Trading employs over
200 workers, especially during the harvest
season. Before the pandemic, the company
had various work titles, such as marketing,
manufacturing, and transportation or
distribution. There was also a delivery truck
at the business. Inventory management,
materials processing, transportation
management, and packaging management
are also available at Brillo Agri-Trading.
Brillo Agri-Trading in the New Normal
Since most farmers depend on a
funding system, the farming activities have
changed as a result of the constraints and
improvements induced by the COVID-19
pandemic. Brillo AgriTrading is also
expected to implement the government's
latest policies and procedures, such as
social distancing, wearing face shield and a
face mask, and disinfecting every two to
three weeks to ensure everyone's protection
and restrict the spread of viruses. The owner
has indicated that the Brillo Agri-Trading
revenue during this pandemic shifts and
affects the quantity of onion production.
However, amid the crisis, the machine,
equipment and the number of employees
and their role in the business remains the
same. While in logistics there are changes
in inventory management during pandemic
like supply allocation to customer also in
transportation management like the drivers
and labors needs to comply Inter-Agency
Task Force during deliveries. Though, there
are no adjustments and quite the same as
before the pandemic in the handling of
materials and packages management.
Traditional and New Normal Marketing
Mix strategy (4P’s) of Brillo Agri
Trading
Product, price, place, and promotion
are the four Ps in marketing. This are the
essential components that must be brought
together in order to successfully grow and
promote a product's unique value and make
it stand out from the rest. Due to the
pandemic's changes and limitations, it's
difficult for Brillo Agri-Trading to export
their supplies. Due to a decrease in the
production of onions, Brillo Agri- Trading's
has to mark-up to the prices of onions. In
place, the business was also very open to its
clients. Brillo Agri-Trading keeps their
onion current and new. The business still
advertised and promoted itself through
radio and social media platforms such as
Facebook. Furthermore, the owner states
that they would advertise the onion to
consumers at full capacity, much as they did
previously.
Challenges of Brillo Agri-Trading the
trading process during pandemic
There are many problems that Brillo
Agri-Trading faces in the trading process
during a pandemic. Here are a few that are
causing the business to struggle. To begin,
the owner of Brillo Agri-trading strongly
agrees with the difficulties that consumers
are unable to easily go to the store to
purchase goods due to their need to remain
at home to avoid spreading viruses and their
fear of interacting with others in order to
preserve their virus-free status. Second, he
acknowledges that the availability of onions
has been restricted as a result of the
pandemic, due to some farmers' lack of
financial resources to grow onions. Third,
he also admits the issue by limiting the
number of farmers who engage in trade as a
result of the pandemic. We all know that
onions are costly to grow because they need
a lot of fertilizer to stay healthy and avoid
insects such as the owlet moth and army
worms. Lastly, due to the pandemic, the
owners have faced delays or transportation
problems, such as checkpoints and a
shortage of drivers to carry onions into the
dealer. Furthermore, the owner of Brillo
Agri-Trading suggested a strategy or
scheme to address all of the improvements
that the onion industry is facing as a result
of the COVID 19 pandemic, saying,
"Transactions can be made ahead of time so
that production, trading and deliveries can
be calculated”
CONCLUSION AND
RECOMMENDATION
Brilllo Agri-trading operates as a
wholesaler and retailer in the market. They
have customer of more than 200 farmers in
the industry sector while more than 300
farmers are customer in the consumer
market. Brillo Agri- trading business had a
specific supplier that supplies goods to
support the needs of the business. The
company has four different job position
such as sales, production, and finance and
transportation sector. During the new
normal brought by COVID 19 pandemic,
Brillo Agri- trading has a big adjustment for
the restrictions and protocols of the
government. The business needs to require
to follow the protocol where in the
Customer and the employee are needs to
wear Face mask as well as face shield to
protect themselves from the virus. They
also need to disinfect the places three times
a week to make sure that there is no any
virus in the surrounding of the places where
the business is. Because of the pandemic
the company needs to adjust for the loss of
manpower based on the protocol that the
government has implemented. During new
normal, Marketing Mix Strategy (4p’s) of
Brillo Agri-trading has change. It is
difficult for the business to export their
supplies. Due to decrease of production.
Brillo Agri-trading needs to mark
up the price of the product. The businesses
still advertise and promoted itself through
radio and social media platform. There are
many challenges of Brillo Agri-trading In
terms of trading practises: the customers
are limited since health protocol is strictly
implemented, the availability of onion has
been restricted due to lack of financial
resources and lastly, the issue of limiting
the number of farmers who engage in
trading. Major problems encountered by the
onion industry were low production and
low quality caused by limited capital, lack
of technical know-how in production and
post-production and harvesting of
immature onion
Based on the results of this study,
the following suggestions are offered:
Brillo Agri-trading should strengthen their
social media presence such as Facebook,
messenger, Instagram and website. These
Social media platforms enables to
communicate with your customer without
face to face interaction. For the customer
they should manage their financial system
to avoid the lack of financial resources and
to achieve sustainable financial stability.
For the future researchers, it is necessary to
conduct related study before making their
research. Hence, they must consider the
current situation of the business before
conducting study to effectively and
efficiently provide a reliable explanation.
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