Lawmaker seeks more R&D to boost salt industry

MANILA, Philippines - Rep. Josephine Sato of Mindoro Occidental has urged the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) to intensify programs on research and development to boost the country’s salt industry and increase the income of salt farmers.

“It is time we put more science to salt production. We are rich in saltwater, but we need to get a clear and more accurate picture of how the government can help boost the industry. This is where research and development should come in,” she said last weekend.

She said there is a need to assess the status of the country’s salt industry, survey production areas, identify the best technology and initiate technology transfer. 

The DOST can also guide lawmakers on what needs to be done through proper budget allocation, she said.

Sato urged salt producers to revive their national association to further promote and protect the industry.

She lauded the DOST for helping salt makers in her province, which is one of the biggest producers of salt in the country, accounting for 40 percent of national production.

She urged the DOST to modernize and transform the salt industry not only in Mindoro Occidental but also in other provinces as well.

She noted that there is now a newer salt crystallization technology that could increase the production of salt farmers.

“Being an island archipelago surrounded with abundant saltwater, our country has the potential of developing a dollar-earning industry through science and technology,” Sato stressed.

She urged the government to provide mechanisms and incentives in the production, marketing, and distribution of salt, and to ensure the sustainability of the salt iodization program as mandated by law.