Agrilink showcases farm mechanization technologies

MANILA, Philippines - Slated on Oct. 10 to 12 at the World Trade Center,  the Foundation for Resource Linkage and Development (FRLD) will highlight the latest technologies in farm mechanization through Agrilink, Foodlink and Aqualink, the country’s largest and most influential trade fair on agriculture, aquaculture and food.

Now on its 20th year, Agrilink’s theme this year focuses on common service facilities that provide economies of scale direly needed by predominantly small farms and agribusiness in need of mechanization and value-adding.

One of the model recipients of farm mechanization assistance under the Department of Agriculture’s (DA) Rice Mechanization Program is the Amucao Seed Grower Agro Industrial Cooperative (ASGAIC).

The Tarlac-based cooperative has mechanical transplanters, harvesters and threshers to service the needs of  certified seed farms of their members.

Having undertaken training from PhilRice, the cooperative only uses 60kg per hectare of registered foundation seeds per planting season, compared to 80kg/ha using manual transplanting.

Benedicto Tiamson, ASGAIC’s board director, said, “We started out with 19 members in 2004, with merely one walk-in transplanter to our name. Years of partnership with DA have made the cooperative benefit from the rapidly growing demand for certified seeds accredited by Philrice and the Bureau of Plant Industry, as these certified seeds consistently yield 120 sacks of rice per hectare per planting season, compared to 80 sacks using ordinary seeds. Our community is now considered the palay seed capital of Tarlac.

Clearly, we’ve come to realize the advantages of using mechanized technology and we are planning to invest more in it so we can help more of our fellow farmers.”

With ASGAIC’s partnership with DA, they were able to acquire a warehouse, multi-purpose drying pavement and seed cleaner through DA’s 85 to 15 Agrilink showcase farm mechanization technologies subsidy scheme.

They have also begun constructing a rice processing complex which will serve as the cooperative’s common service facility for other farmers in nearby barangays so they can safely store their seeds and produce.

The rice processing complex will have a one ton/hr rice mill, along with an initial operating capital of P1.5M.

Agrilink 2013 is supported by the Department of Agriculture and its units, Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization, Bureau of Agricultural Research and 20 other major Philippine trade associations.

For more inquiries contact 2164016, and 09175888799 or email [email protected].

Visitors can also pre-register their attendance through its official Facebook page at facebook.com/agrilinkPH.