Additional flatbed dryers sought
A group of rice farmers in Pavia, Iloilo are requesting for additional flatbed dryers from the Department of Agriculture to accommodate their drying needs during harvest season.
Eduardo Alcazarem, president of Palacat-tian Irrigators Association, said their one unit of dryer is insufficient to dry all the harvests of their members.
The IA covers more than 800 hectares of service area.
“We cannot dry all the produce of our members simultaneously, this is why we would like to ask for additional units of flatbed dryer. It is really a big help to us,” he said.
The distribution of flatbed dryers to IAs is part of the mechanical drying program to farm cluster of the Department of Agriculture.
Alcazarem said the FBDs gave work to the community since it started its operation in August 2008. Out-of-school youth were hired as laborers to earn additional income.
He added the quality of the grains dried using the FBD is much better compared to solar drying. The National Food Authority offers higher price to FBD-dried grains because of the quality and moisture content of the grains.
Traders also prefer to buy and mill FBD-dried grains because of good milling recovery.
“With the flatbed dryer, we can dry our harvest even at night and store it the following day,” he said.
Before the IA acquired the dryer, the farmers are forced to sell their harvest at a lower price to avoid rotting.
“Now, the members just bring their harvest here and they can get it the next day. The P30 drying fee includes the fuel and the payment for the laborers and operator,” Alcazarem said.
The members of the association who avail of the drying services are charged P30 per sack.
Sharon Rose Jucaban, senior institutional development officer of the National Irrigation Administration 6, said the dryer operates 24 hours to serve the IA members.*PhilMech
