PhilRice engineers develop three machines for rugged, terraced farms

Engineers of PhilRice (Philippine Rice Research Institute) have developed three machines that are suited to the rugged and terraced farms in the Cordilleras.

These machines — a microtiller, a panicle thresher, and a micromill — have caught the interest of farmers in Ifugao and are now becoming popular in the cool elevated highland.

PhilRice engineer Arnold S. Juliano said trials conducted in three barangays in Hungduan, Ifugao demonstrated that the microtiller can prepare a 440-square meter rice field in one hour with only one operator. This means two operators can alternate with each other to prepare more than one-third of a hectare in one day or a hectare in less than three days.

Costing P27,000 in Ifugao, the microtiller can plow and puddle at the same time. It can also plow portions of the fields that are close to the levees. Its small size and light weight allow the operators to move it from one terrace to another or from a lower to a higher terrace and vice versa. 

The panicle thresher can thresh 250 kg of bundled panicles in an hour. In the past, threshing has been laborious and time consuming since it was normally done by stepping on the bundled panicles to separate the grains from the straw.

The micromill, on the other hand, can mill 50 to 75 kg of paddy into brown rice in an hour. Since rice mills are not common in the highlands, farmers normally pound the rice grains to produce brown rice but this is also laborious and time consuming.

The congressman and governor of Ifugao have bought 25 microtillers each and distributed them to farmers in different municipalities, according to Juliano. 

Likewise, 15 farmers in Hungduan, Ifugao have bought their own micromill, while two farmers bought panicle threshers, which they intend to use both in their farms and for custom service. 

In addition, three barangay councils have decided to buy three pairs of panicle thresher and micromill for the use of their farmers. On the other hand, the Bambang barangay council has bought two units of the microtiller.

What’s more, the Hungduan local government unit also intends to buy the three machines this year. — Sosimo Ma. Pablico