"My Chicharon (Filipino term for puffed deep-fried pork skin) is different. Once you taste it you will crave for more"... This is the common line of Mr. Gerardo Cabrera, "Gerry" for short, when asked about his business. Chicharon is an appetizer for many Filipinos and good for "pulutan" (chaser) for drinkers, but Gerry Cabrera and his wife Marlyn, chicharon is their secret weapon against poverty where they get additional income. Aside from Gerry's daily wage in the meat shop in Pasay City, their daily household and educational expenses for their 4 children, only son and three daughters, are dependent on the chicharon they produce and sell.

Gerry with gratitude and appreciation says, "Minsan ako ay nangarap na magkaroon ng chicharanonan na hindi na ako tatakbo pag-umuulan at iiwas sa usok sa twuing ako ay nagluluto" (I once dreamed of having a kitchen for my chicharon business where I don't have to run for shelter when it rains and run away from the smoke everytime I cook). "Now I have realized my dream kitchen. I know chicharon alone can't lead us to financial independence; I have to make the most of my other skills in food processing for us to maximize the use our institutional stove and kitchen for better income to sustain our increasing needs as the children grow and move to higher educational levels". Gerry narrated his experience and how his relatives grew from being a market meat vendor into a retailer and distributor of meat and processed foods in the Pasay City. This is where Gerry works as all-around helper and hands-on meat processor, delivery boy and collector of "pautang" (credit) and consigned goods for his cousin. Gerry learned how to cook chicharon when he was working with his uncle in the chicharon factory in Laguna. Gerry quips "tinulungan ko silang yumaman dapat panahon na para magsarili na rin ako para sa pamilya ko" (I helped them become rich, it's now time for me to help myself and my family).

"Totoo kaya yun"…,"Pupunta kaya sya"…, Gerry asked Marlyn one evening upon his arrival at home from his work in Pasay. Gerry refused to answer when Marlyn asked what was it all about that he keeps on murmuring. The following day, while Gerry was preparing to cook, Bernadett Parado, Approtech Asia Project Coordinator arrived in their house as agreed about a week ago. Ms Parado was the answer to Marlyn's question about Gerry's murmuring. Gerry & Bernadett met in the jeepney when Gerry was going to deliver his chicharon on his way back to work in Pasay while Bernadett was on her way back to office from field work. With their short conversation, Bernadett got some information from Gerry's chicharon business and became interested in helping Gerry improve his cooking practices. During the home visit of Bernadett, she confirmed that Gerry used second hand drum as his wok and cooks outside their house using three-stones as stove and wood as fuel.

At first glance the chicharon he cooks look like asphalt being mixed in a drum. The cooking oil is thick and black. While cooking outdoor, Gerry improvised a tent to provide shelter from the rays of the sun during sunny days and from the rain during rainy days. During rainy and stormy weather, Gerry's tent cannot protect him from getting wet while he fire in his stove is put off.

For every 30 kilograms of pork skin cooked in 5 hours, Gerry consumes two sacks of fuelwood which cost PhP80 pesos per sack. Gerry bring scraps of wood which he gathers for free from construction sites in Pasay City but pays for transportation at almost the same amount per sack to the their place.

Gerry claims that their cooking area outside the house and using an improvised stove that emits too much smoke and heat prohibits his wife from helping him in cooking. Cooking outside and using stove that emits too much smoke and heat, Gerry can no longer do other things that will wet his hands, therefore, if he and his wife would both cook and be exposed to heat, no one would attend to the household chores. Moreover, during rainy days, cooking is more difficult and when it's windy he has to move from one place to another around his wok to avoid the smoke blown by the wind towards him.

Despite cooking outside in an open air, Gerry was exposed to 1.25mg/m3 or 1250ug/m3 and 10.60ppm of PM and CO concentration which is above the recommended standard of WHO or 25 ug/m3 and 9ppm, respectively.

Gerry's place of work is quite far from his residence. He goes home once a week during his day-off. His wife has been wanting long ago for him to stay in their house everyday for their family to be always together. At night, they also feel more secured when Gerry is in the house. Moreover, Gerry helps a lot in the household chores making it easier for his wife. Unfortunately, as much as they wanted to devote full time to their business, they lack capital and facilities for the business, thereby prohibiting them from staying together all days of the week.

Gerry needs an improved kitchen facility for him to produce his chicharon business efficiently. After undergoing a thorough orientation, the couple understood the mechanics of the project and they willingly expressed their interest in joining the project. They expressed their desire and plan to construct an improved kitchen and build an institutional cooktove through Approtech Asia's Project entitled, "Improving Kitchen for Indoor Air Quality and Health of Food Micro-Entrepreneurs" with technical assistance from CIDA-AIT. SEA UEMA based in Bangkok. The kitchen and the cookstove were constructed through a micro-finance program which the couple openly agreed upon. While Gerry was away from home working 5 days a week in Pasay, Marlyn was working closely with the Engr. Jerson Landringan in the design, layout and material estimate of the project.

Marlyn with technical assistance from Approtech Asia Staff manages the construction in the absence of Gerry. Marlyn's brothers and nephew who are also skilled carpenter and laborers are hired to construct the kitchen based on the plan. Mr. Bernard Gunabe, Aprrotech Asia trained stove-builder constructed the improved institutional cookstove for Gerry. The cookstove body is made of fired bricks and concrete finished. The combustion chamber is insulated with mixtures of clay and rice hull. Gerry helps build the cookstove when he was at home.

The single pot-hole institutional cookstove measures 1.0 by 1.2 meter. The 32-inch wok fits into the pot-hole for a smoke-free kitchen. The cookstove has a chimney that drives the smoke out of the kitchen. During cooking, when the pork skin is submerged in oil, it produces a lot of smoke/steam which makes the kitchen too hot and dry. To resolve the problem, an exhaust fan was installed right beside the chimney on the lefthand corner above the cookstove. This intervention reduced PM by 69 percent from 1250ug/m3 to 390 ug/m3 and CO by 58 percent from 10.60pm to 4.44ppm. Together with Gerry, Marlyn and Approtech Asia Project Officer Claud Jan Marquez purchased the wok. She made sure that the amount spent for the wok is worth its quality and use.

The improved kitchen gave the couple hope that their long time dream of having a successful chicharon business will soon come true. This means that Gerry will now spend more time at home attending to their business because of improved facilities which makes him produce more and better quality products for more profit. Moreover, spending more time at home with his family makes him a responsible and caring father especially in giving guidance and taking the discipline to their children. This arrangement gives husband and wife the opportunity to disuss their business.

Gerry and his family realized they are moving closer to realize their dream business with the construction of the improved kitchen for their modest chicharon (puffed deep-fried pork skin) business. For him, his wife and father-in-law, this kitchen is a blessing. Now, with convenient facilities for the business, Gerry and his wife have concrete plans to increase the volume of production. Gerry's 50 percent saving on fuel from using the improved institutional cookstove was spent on buying more fuel stocked for the rainy days.

When asked what makes Approtech Asia different compared to other NGOs and MFIs, the couple replied that the difference lies on the motive of helping the entrepreneurial poor like them not only with the financial aspect of their business but most importantly on the infrastructure and technology which made their business operation run efficiently, giving more health benefits from reducing the smoke in the kitchen, making the cooking area clean and sanitary, increase in net income from the savings on fuel cost using the institutional stove.

The couple has availed of additional working capital for their business expansion and looks forward to have the completion of the planned kitchen in preparation for the business registration with the City Health Office to operate legally and for their products to be known not only in their place but to other parts of Metro Manila. They also look forward to improve their business practice of using electric sealer instead of using plastic straw to seal their product. This entails additional cost but it can improve the shelf-life and appearance of the product in preparation for the branding application with the Food and Drugs Administration.

The goal of expanding their chicharon factory is shared by the whole family. Their dream family business has started to take-off and everyone in the family is enthusiastic to make the family business a great success. Their children planned to take care of the legacy of their father. When the demand for the chicharon increase through aggressive marketing and producing quality products the expansion will be devoted in expanding their chicharon factory occupying the vacant lot in front of their house.