This Little Piggy Went to … Nebraska
Gharn Santos Rivera from Benguet, Philippines, came to the U.S. in March 2013 for one year, to pursue an internship at Livingston Enterprises, a swine production facility in Fairbury, Nebraska. A softball aficionado who speaks fluent Japanese, Gharn really appreciates the opportunity for training at Livingston Enterprises. Prior to her internship in the USA, Gharn was a trainee in Japan.
Livingston Enterprises Inc. is owned by Bruce and Trudy Livingston and family. The company was started by Bruce at the age of 8 with 6 gilts. With hard work and determination, Bruce has grown the company to over 14,000 sows and takes great pride in producing and delivering large, uniform groups of healthy weaned pigs for customers. Bruce and his family have been hosting trainees for many years and look forward to continued participation as host.
Bernard Opoku, Farmer and Entrepreneur
Native Ghanaian Bernard Opoku completed an internship between 2007 and 2009 while he was placed at Piliwale Produce, a Hawaiian farm in Kula, Maui.
At Piliwale Produce, Bernard gained experience growing Asian and Western vegetables, both for wholesale and direct to consumer. His host, Patricia Daniells, helped him to better understand the business of farming and worked with him to develop a business plan, as well as rent his own space at the nearby farmers market. She then gave him a plot of land to grow his own produce, which he direct marketed himself. His crops included corn, herbs, and a variety of shade house vegetables.
Described by host Patricia as “a kind person and an astute go-getter,” Bernard is grateful for the invaluable one-on-one time he received from his mentor. As a result of his experience, he considers himself well equipped for a career in agriculture, both as a farmer and an entrepreneur.
The Ideal Exchange Trainee
Heitor Franco de Sousa from Ituivtaba, exchange trainee: he is cooperative, open-minded, and outgoing with a positive outlook on life. He also has the ability to build strong relationships and establish good rapport with the people around him, including fellow students, teachers, colleagues, and employers.
Heitor’s can-do attitude and agreeable disposition caught the attention of one of his professors at FEIT (Institute of Technology) in Brazil, where Heitor was studying. Heitor’s professor encouraged him to pursue a program through WFE.
A short time later, Heitor began an internship on a dairy farm in Hanford, Calif, where he immersed himself in American culture and spent his free time exploring the surrounding area. He was particularly happy to be close to the ocean and he enjoyed taking trips through the Sierra Nevada Mountains, as well as visiting nearby San Francisco.
Back in Brazil, he is hoping to someday return to the U.S. with his girlfriend for further study.
Peter Ngunjiri Talks About Exchange’s Competitive Advantage
Peter Ngunjiri heard about us via word of mouth from a former trainee. He joined the program to further his goals of becoming a professional farmer and improving agricultural practices in his native Kenya.
During his internship, Peter trained at a vegetable farm in Kula, Maui with the Ito family. Specifically, Peter learned vegetable production for the wholesale market with the Ito family to produce a diversity of vegetables, from Maui Sweet Onions to various leafy green crops.
Peter says that the practical work experience he obtained while in the U.S. gave him a competitive advantage over others in the agricultural sector in Kenya. Ultimately, this edge helped him secure a position as controller at Oserian Flower Farm in Kenya, where he currently works.
His long-term goals include owning his own farm and helping to meet the Kenyan demand for produce.
Meet Exchange Host Farmer Fernando Traje
Originally from the Philippines, Fernando Traje owns a farm in Hawaii and has been a Exchange host farmer for many years.
Nestled in the eucalyptus-scented upcountry region of Maui, Hawaii is the quaint, rustic district of Kula. Known for its many ranches, farms, and botanical gardens, Kula is a veritable culinary mecca with local farmers supplying exotic produce to many of the island’s well-known hotels and restaurants.
He now owns Traje Farms, where he grows a diverse range of vegetables and fruits in the area’s rich, volcanic soil. His crops include onions, eggplants, zucchini, beans, mint, basil, thyme, bananas, bitter melon, watermelon, and okra, among others.
He is currently hosting a trainee from Nepal and looks forward to participating in Exchange program as a host farmer for years to come.
Barikisu Jangu Completes Exchange Internship, Pays It Forward in Ghana
A graduate of the University for Development Studies in her native Ghana, Barikisu Jangu began her internship in 2012 when she came to live and experience American culture, and train at Livingston Enterprises, a swine production facility Fairbury, Nebraska.
Described by her hosts as “one of the sweetest, kindest people you will ever meet,” Barikisu was recommended to the program by Patrick Bandanaa, a former trainee who also completed training with Livingston Enterprises in 2010, and who now works for Ghana’s Finance Ministry.
Barikisu’s primary goal as a participant was to learn everything she could in America during her internship, return to Ghana, and teach agriculture. She is doing just that.
Today, Barikisu is an agricultural extension officer focused on outreach to women farmers in Ghana. Her job takes her by motorcycle to various parts of the country to help women farmers strategize, plan their farms, improve production, and optimize logistics. She also works to address the specific needs and challenges of women farmers throughout Ghana, listening to their concerns and advocating on their behalf.
The best part?
She says she absolutely loves her job and that her experience gave her the confidence and skills to meet any challenging task. What’s more, she claims that interacting with all of the different cultures during her internship in Nebraska significantly improved her interpersonal communication skills.
Welcome to Dry Creek Vineyards, Exchange Host Winery
Located in Healdsburg, Calif., Dry Creek Vineyards is one of the few remaining family-owned wineries in California. With more than 40 years of grape growing and winemaking experience, the company produces what Wine Enthusiast Magazine characterizes as “outstanding wines,” and is specifically known for its excellent Sauvignon blanc, Chenin blanc, and Zinfandel varieties.
The company has also been a Exchange wine program host for over ten years, accepting two trainees per year into their winemaking internship program.
A Day in the Life of a Dry Creek Trainee
Dry Creek trainees enjoy onsite housing and typically start their internship as cellar hands, unless they have more specialized skills. Trainees are involved in all aspects of winemaking and can be found in the cellar, the tasting room, and everywhere in between. Dry Creek Vineyards enjoys playing to the strengths of its interns and works collaboratively with trainees to design a training plan that leverages these strengths.
Meet Exchange Host Farmer Woody Goble
What do tropical flowers, horned chameleons, and Oprah Winfrey have in common?
You can find them all at Goble’s Hawaiian Flower Farm in Kula, Maui.
As the producer of some of the most sought-after tropical flowers in the world, former U.S. marine and longtime Exchange host farmer Woody Goble is uniquely situated. Not only is his farm the highest cultivated piece of land on the island… it is also next door to a property owned by Oprah Winfrey.
And while Oprah sightings occur from time to time, it is the horned chameleons that tend to catch the attention of most visitors and guests to Woodruff’s property.
“They are actually cute, but they are running amok on the island,” he says.
A host farmer for over 20 years, Woody enjoys the opportunity to learn about different cultures while sharing what he knows about running a successful flower farm. Suffice it to say he has quite a bit of knowledge to share: he’s been producing, arranging, and shipping tropical flowers for over 30 years…and his business is his passion.
Internships at Goble’s Hawaiian Flower Farm
In general, Woody likes to have one intern at a time. He has hosted participants from a wide variety of countries, most recently Cambodia. His participants learn about cultivating and harvesting flowers, including Birds of Paradise, Silver Dollar Eucalyptus, Proteas, Gingers, Sandlewood, and other high-altitude varieties. They also learn about arranging and shipping flowers in addition to gaining direct business experience with consumers by selling the flowers at the farmers market.
Riding Horses in Curtis, Nebraska
A horseback riding aficionado, staffer Bob Lemon has been a coordinator for Exchange program for many years. He loves the cultural exchange he gains from the diverse group of participants from all over the world.
Bob lives in Curtis, Nebraska with his wife and daughter, his dog Ozzy, and his daughter’s pet raccoon Sparky. He enjoys travelling internationally and exploring other cultures. His motto? “See more of the world…and make more silage!”
Fluent in Albanian, English and Greek, Olsi Nini is Albanian by nationality, but considers himself a true “citizen of the world.”
His adventurous spirit and desire to advance his agricultural education compelled him to leave his native Albania to move to Greece, where he completed an internship at Anchialos, S.A., a company importing agricultural machinery, spare parts, lubricants, and consumables. While in Greece, Olsi was responsible for operating and maintaining machinery and equipment, as well as providing excellent customer service to the company’s multinational client base.
After his internship in Greece, he came to the U.S. as an Exchange trainee at the Kotschwar farm, where he is learning about grain production.
He plans to experience agriculture in other countries, before reaching his ultimate goal of becoming an agriculture consultant in Albania. He would like to partner with us to recruit qualified candidates for the program and help local farmers get the skills and education they need to succeed.
Making History at Livingston Enterprises
Former Exchange trainees Bienvenido De Guzman, Ruby Ruel Ocho, Adson David, Alfred Camalian, and Anthony Dizon made history when they completed their 2008 internships at Livingston Enterprises in Fairbury, Nebraska: they were the first five trainees from the Philippines to live and train in swine production.
All five trainees credit for helping them improve their experience in swine production and increasing their marketability in the industry.
Do you speak pig?
While at Livingston Enterprises, trainee Adson David learned all about the company’s pig farrowing operation, including some of the following industry terms:
Pig, hog or swine: refers to the species as a whole, or any member of it. The singular of "swine" is the same as the plural.
Shoat or piglet: an unweaned young pig, or any immature pig.
Sucker: a pig between birth and weaning.
In pig: pregnant.
Farrowing: giving birth.
Hogging: a sow when in heat
All Hail the Sweet Maui Onion King
It is the type of success story that makes us proud.
Philippine native Noel Escobedo came to Kula, Maui as a intern with Yoshio Arakaki, a former host farmer and owner of one of Hawaii’s premier sweet onion farms. Upon completing his internship, Noel returned to finish his schooling at Sorsogon in the Philippines. After completing his schooling, he was once again sponsored by Mr. Arakaki…and ultimately took over his farm.
In the past, the farm harvested sweet onions only once a year; however, Noel found that he could plant of sweet onions every two weeks so the plants could be harvested throughout the year. This innovative planting process changed sweet onion production on Maui forever…and Noel became very successful.
Fast forward to present day and Noel Escobedo Farms has grown into a thriving business known for its luscious lettuces, tastebud-tickling tomatoes, mouth-watering mangoes, palate-pleasing papayas…and the king of them all, the much revered Maui Sweet Onion.
It is this last crop that has earned Noel his reputation in certain circles as the Maui Sweet Onion King.
Noel remains grateful to us for the many opportunities that have opened to him as a result of his participation in the program—and he is committed to giving back, by educating the worlds next generation of farmers, especially in the Philippines where he provides scholarships to students and supports the agriculture community infrastructure, to help improve their farming practices.
Hothouse Tomatoes and Hawaiian Cowboys
When Exchange trainees Alexander Delos Santos and Antonio Villanueva signed on to intern at Kawamata Farms in Waimea, Hawaii, they not only got an education in hothouse tomato production – they became fully immersed in the unique paniolo (Hawaiian cowboy) culture that makes this scenic district unlike any other in the Hawaiian islands.
Located in the northern interior of Hawaii’s Big Island, the historic Waimea County has a distinctively Western feel, due in no small part to its rolling hills, green pastures, and the fact that it’s home to one of the largest, privately owned cattle ranches in the U.S.
Against a pastoral backdrop of ranching, wrangling, and rodeos, Alexander and Antonio began their respective internships with Kawamata Farms, an award-winning commercial tomato grower that sells produce under the popular Kamuela Tomatoes brand. There, they learned how to grow tomatoes using the Dutch method of hydroponics in which tomato plants are grown in a nutrient solution rather than soil.
Hydroponics 101
As Alexander and Antonio experienced first-hand, growing tomatoes hydroponically allows the grower to raise them in a controlled environment without weeds, insects, or soil-borne diseases. Hydroponic systems are efficient and environmentally friendly, recycling water and nutrients, as well as optimizing space. Another benefit of hydroponic tomatoes is that the plants grow faster than their soil-grown counterparts, and their yield is greater.