Thursday, October 05, 2006 Usage of Benguet cold chain improves: agri office
ALTHOUGH the cold storage facility in La Trinidad did not achieve its maximum usage for the first year of its operation, the agriculture department's Bureau of Post-harvest Research and Extension (BPRE) said utilization of the project has significantly perked up this year.
Compared to the 21.33 percent last year, usage of the refrigerated trucks increased to 37.50 percent for the first six months of this year, the BPRE added.
The bureau also said that the utilization of the modular cold storage improved from 31 percent last year to 75 percent from January to July this year.
BPRE Executive Director Ricardo Cachuela made the report to Presidential Management Staff (PMS) Chief Arthur Yap following a disclosure on the low usage of the Benguet Cold Chain (BCC) project in Wangal, La Trinidad. Yap was informed of the low utilization of the cold storage facility during his visit to Baguio and Benguet on September 21, pursuant to the North Luzon Agribusiness Quadrangle (NLAQ) project of the Arroyo administration.
In his letter to Yap, Cachuela said that while utilization of the cold storage was minimal for the first year of its operation, their records showed that "the trend is increasing and had even reached optimum by mid of the second year."
The letter also said that the volume of vegetable being accommodated by the cold storage increased to 165 metric tons from January to July this year from 135 metric tons last year.
Cachuela further explained that the maximum usage of the cold chain was assumed at 75 percent to allow the required facility maintenance, which, he said, is "necessary for longevity". "Seventy-five percent utilization would mean we have 92 days a year or eight days a month or two days a week off operation for maintenance and repairs if needed," he said.
He said one of the reasons for the low usage of the cold storage is the lack of equally important component of the cold chain to include packaging and minimal processing plants, pre-coolers at the farm level and cold storage at the market outlet. He, however, said the issue would instead give more reasons for the establishment of more cold chain projects for the NLAQ as a means to enhance the competitive advantage of the region.
Among the compositions of the NLAQ include Cordillera and Region 1. (JC)
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