Aklan fruit growers benefit from DOST tech assistance

BANGA, Aklan – Farmers in this province growing fruits stand to benefit from an integrated fruit processing project now being implemented by the Aklan State University (ASU) in this town.

Now in place at ASU is a fruit processing center established to extend assistance to fruit farmers by providing common service facilities for fruit processing and technical training.

The center was among those visited by DOST officials and jour-nalists who took part in the "Technology Transfer Roadshow" last Jan. 29-30. The group was briefed on the DOST-assisted projects at ASU by Dr. Benny Palma, university president; Dr. Edito Agus-tin, research director; and DOST-Region 6 director Zinnia Teruel.

Aklan is blessed with abundant fruits such as calamansi, mango, lanzones, rambutan, and other tropical fruits that during the fruit-bearing season, prices tend to go down owing to oversupply.

Thus, the processing center was conceived to help solve the farmers’ problems.

The technology transfer conducted by ITDI in 1996 for integrated calamansi processing started the commercialization of calamansi-based products at ASU. Calamansi concentrates were sold initially at the school’s canteen.

ITDI, currently headed by Director Ernesto Lozada, later extended technical assistance in laying out the center.

The center is now producing fruit juices, calamansi concentrate, fruit cocktail, nata de coco, papaya nectar, and instant "salabat" (ginger tea) marketed in Kalibo, Aklan’s capital town. – Rudy A. Fernand