DA establishes Corn Post Harvest Plant and Trading Center
Negrenses are now privileged to eat corn and its by-products which are free from aflatoxin, a toxic chemical, because of the establishment of the Corn Post Harvest Plant and Trading Center at Sagay City, Negros Occidental recently.
Regional Executive Director Larry P. Nacionales of the Department of Agriculture said that the Corn Post Harvest and Trading Center is worth PhP37.0 million and is a project of the DA and the National Agribusiness Corporation (NABCOR). Dir. Nacionales said that the facility is a boost to the corn and livestock industries in Western Visayas because corn is a source of feeds for the animals considering that there are eight feed millers in Western Visayas.
Governor Isidro Zayco of Negros Occidental expressed his gratitude to the DA and the NABCOR for choosing Sagay as the recipient of the center among the several towns in the region. He assured both agencies that the use of the center will be maximized and that the recipient will see to it that it is properly maintained and managed. Gov. Zayco urged the farmers to plant more corn because trading is made easier and post harvest losses are minimized with the establishment of the Corn Post Harvest Plant and Trading Center.
The post harvest facilities of the center are worth P20 million and these include cob dryer, sheller and grain dryer. The recipient which is the local government of Sagay, has a P12 million counterpart in the form of the building, land and a three-phase electric power to run the plant. The remainingP5 million is the capital of the recipient in buying corn in cobs from the farmers.
The first five years of the operation of the center will be handled by the NABCOR. NABCOR will conduct trainings on the operation of the center, preparation of the feasibility studies and trading of corn and its by-products. The feasibility studies are maybe on how to avail loans of tractors, trucks or even production loan. The center will be turned-over to the local government of Sagay after five years.
For 2008, the total production was 349,297 m.t. of which 276,329 for yellow corn and 72,968 m.t for white corn. The total area harvested was 141,924 hectares. Other post harvest facilities put-up in the region are one unit mechanical shredder, two sites for processing center and an aflatoxin laboratory. The province of Capiz availed three units of tractor. The DA distributed 28,000 packets of Bio-N and 29,500 tricho-cards. (Theresa A. Gerafil, DA 6)