President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. on Monday led the inauguration of a new rice processing system (RPS) and distributed farming machinery for agriculture stakeholders at the Science City of Muñoz in Nueva Ecija.
The activity is part of ongoing government efforts through the Department of Agriculture to modernize agribusinesses by improving rice production and uplifting the working conditions of Filipino farmers.
The newly opened RPS facility is a project of the Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization (PhilMech). It was implemented under the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF) Mechanization Program.
The post-harvest infrastructure reportedly features cutting-edge machines capable of processing two to three tons of rice per hour. It includes rice mills, dryers, and automated packing systems for the benefit of about 6,000 farmers covering 9,200 hectares of rice fields.
At least 17 farmers’ cooperatives also received new farming equipment such as tractors and harvesters to assist them in their livelihoods.
Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel, Jr. and other officials joined President Marcos in this activity.
