Portable smoke processor for fish wins award

A smoke processor that can process different kinds of products, particularly smoked and dried fish, has been developed by a state university researcher.

The device has been named 4-in-1 portable smoke processor by its inventor, Zaldy A. Fernandez of the Mariano Marcos State University (MMSU) because it can do four functions at the same time: marinating, boiling, drying, and smoking.

(MMSU, headed by Dr. Miriam Pascua, president, is a multi-campus university in Ilocos Norte whose seat of administration is the main campus in Batac. Fernandez is an instructor at the MMSU College of Industrial Technology situated in Laoag City.)

The processor won the first prize in the Aquatic Technology Competition and Marketplace (ATCOM) sponsored by the Los Baños, Laguna-based Department of Science and Technology-Philippine Council for Aquatic and Marine Research and Development (DOST-PCAMRD) headed by Executive Director Rafael D. Guerrero III.

Fernandez received a cash prize of P100,000 and a trophy at a program last Jan. 31 marking the observance of PCAMRD’s 19th anniversary.

The 28-year-old MMSU researcher said his creation was constructed with the use of locally available stainless steel and sheets having three main parts: boiler chamber (kalan), dryer/smoke chamber, and marinater chamber (used for the preparation of the brine solution for drying and smoking process).

One needs only P21,027.60 to fabricate the device, which has a capacity of 20 kilograms of fish.

The process can also be used to cook rice or other food items while the fish is being smoked.

"Built with specially selected stainless materials, the smoke processor is guaranteed to produce clean and safe products," Fernandez averred.

He added that the introduction of the 4-in-1 portable smoke processor is beneficial to the country and to the people whose lives are dependent on the fish smoking industry.

"This will give a better alternative to Filipino fish smokers who are used to poorly designed, dilapidated, and slow-performing smoking houses and devices," Fernandez concluded. – Rudy A. Fernandez