A young Filipino inventor has designed a portable palay drying system aimed at helping farmers cut postharvest losses during typhoons and power outages, a recurring problem in the Philippines where 22 tropical cyclones strike on average each year.
John Dence Flores, an Industrial Design graduate of De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde, created the system, called Anihon, to provide a practical alternative to the traditional sun-drying method that often fails during prolonged rains or cloudy weather.
“About 408,764 metric tons of palay–or 4.5 percent of the national harvest–are wasted every year,” Flores said, noting that moisture left in newly harvested rice grains often leads to mold, spoilage, and income loss for farmers.
Anihon runs on a hybrid system powered by electricity and used cooking oil, which helps cut carbon emissions. It is designed with user-friendly features, including tempered glass for visibility, oil gauges, and intuitive controls, allowing even a single farmer to operate the machine.
The prototype features four trays that can each hold up to 25 kilograms of wet palay and a tank for four liters of used oil. It can operate for up to eight hours of continuous drying. During blackouts, it can switch to a manual furnace using ignited carbon material.
Flores said the dryer was developed after months of fieldwork in Albay, including surveys and interviews with local farmers. The working prototype was later sent to Aklan, where farmers tested it on their own crops.
Mentored by former program chair Romeo Catap Jr. and supported by engineers and faculty members, Flores refined the design as his capstone project. He now plans to expand its capacity to accommodate other grains such as wheat, maize, beans, sunflower and rapeseeds, and sorghum.
He is also looking into renewable power sources such as solar and wind to align with sustainable energy goals.
“Anihon offers continuous drying for small farms and cooperatives that cannot afford industrial-scale dryers,” Flores said. “It gives farmers in far-flung areas a reliable, weather-independent tool to protect their harvest.”
