Omaira’s Story: Celebrating Our 1,000th User

It was a warm, late-October afternoon in El Carmen de Chucurí, Colombia. Omaira Patiño Velasquez, a lifelong farmer, living with her husband decided to try her hand at something new. With just a few clicks Omaira joined a technological revolution sweeping small farming in Colombia. She created her profile in Agromovil’s Producer App and became famous as Agromovil’s 1,000th user.

“Ever since I was a child, I’ve lived in the countryside,” Omaira fondly recalled. At 60 years old, she has roughly 40 years of farming experience under her belt - 40 years of working the land with her family, hauling their goods to market, and negotiating face-to-face with buyers. 40 years of sweat and sacrifice, 40 years of pride in producing food for her community.

But like many farmers in the Colombian countryside, Omaira and her husband have seen times change in a farming sector where the average age of a farmer has risen to around 58. “We no longer have a large farm because we are older and cannot work as much, so now we have a smaller plot where we raise chickens and laying hens,” explained Omaira. And with changes on the farm, Omaira was increasingly looking for new and more efficient ways to market and sell her goods.

When they moved to a smaller farm, Omaira told us, she had sold only to neighbors. But she wanted to expand, to see more buyers and grow her business. “I was interested in being able to promote my products with people outside my circle. We received a loan to develop our business several months ago and now we have more to sell. I wanted to make more money and I needed a marketing channel that could keep up with our production.”

Through the credit union Financiera Comultrasan, an Agromovil partner, Omaira found out about Agromovil. While the app technology was new for her, it was a snap for her kids to learn and explain. The platform was quick to download, and in less than 5 minutes she had a profile, enabling her to reach an audience across the region and even the nation.

So far, Omaira has posted 360 lbs of chicken and 75 buckets of eggs for sale on Agromovil, an increase in market visibility that was not possible for her before. “Other farmers in El Carmen de Chucurí should join Agromovil, I think it would improve their sales.”

Congratulations to Omaira -- a part of the proud future of Colombian agricultural innovation, and Agromovil’s 1,000th user!