By Manny Piñol
Buenos Aires, Argentina – The scheduled sidetrip to Argentina from the APEC Agriculture Ministers’ Conference in Piura City, Peru was almost cancelled because I thought it was too much of a travel for a not so young man like me.
Imagine this route: Davao-Manila-Dubai-Rio de Janeiro-Lima-Piura-Lima-Buenos Aires-Dubai-Manila. All in a span of eight days.
I was, however, persuaded to push through with the Argentina side trip because I was informed that Argentinian Ambassador to the Philippines Roberto Bosch had already made arrangements for my trip.
The object of the side trip was actually to take a look at the Silo Bag facilities being used in the grains industry of Argentina which Ambassador Bosch said helped revolutionise the storage system in his country.
At peak harvest season, the middlemen and traders take advantage of the absence of drying and storage facilities and buy the farmers produce at prices the buyers dictate.
This is happening now as the corn harvest has peaked and the rice harvest is starting as well.
I am glad I did not cancel the trip.
What I saw in Argentina – the modern mobile and stationary drying facilities and the silo bags which could store grains out in the open for even up to four years – could really change things in the Philippine grains industry.
From Buenos Aires, we took a 2-hour land trip yesterday morning to the town of Lezama along with Philippine Ambassador to Argentina Amelita Aquino to visit, SEDA, a sunflower seeds processing facility which was using the silo bags.
During the briefing, the SEDA officers informed me that at a cost of $350, the Ipesa silo bag could store 200 metric tons of grains – wheat, sunflower, corn and palay – for as long as four years in the open fields.
In fact, in Russia and Ukraine, the silo bags kept the grains in perfect shape even under the snow.
They said it lowered their overhead cost because they did not have to build additional buildings for storage and the technology of the silo bag was so outstanding that in Sudan where it is being used now, wheat has been stored for four years.
A field inspection I made along with Philippine agriculture attache Joy Javelosa, Asec. Enrico Garzon, executive asst. Bong Piñol and the embassy officials led by Ambassador Aquino validated the report of Amb. Bosch.
During the meeting, I was informed that another Argentinian company, MEGA Engineering, has also designed mobile and stationary dryers for grains which are now being used all over the world.
Yesterday afternoon, I met with the representative of MEGA engineering, who along with the official of Ipesa Silo bags, will be coming to the Philippines in November to look at the local conditions.
I have asked for their help in designing a mobile dryer which could penetrate the remote grains producing areas of the country, a stationary model which could dry up to 150 metric tons every day and silo bags based on the production of palsy and corn in specific locations.
Hopefully, we will be able to establish pilot projects in at least two areas of the country before the end of the year.
(Photos by Bong Piñol and Dr. JB Piñol.)
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