The delegation from the Department of Agriculture- Philippines, headed by Assistant Secretary for Operations Engr. Arnel V. de Mesa, attended the Korea International Exhibition of Machinery, Science and Technology for Agriculture (KIEMSTA) 2022 last November 2-5, 2022 in Daegu, South Korea. This international exhibition showcased the latest agricultural machinery, science and technologies of about 440 companies from 25 countries around the world and aims to create a venue to assist in the consultation, match making and trade of the farming machinery industry.
As the current administration embarks towards the goal of achieving food sufficiency and improving the agricultural value chain, there is a need to strengthen agricultural collaborations, introduce innovations, and make it available to the local farmers and fisherfolks.
Among the highlights of the event is the meeting with Chairman Kim Shin-Gil of the Korea Agriculture Machinery Industry Cooperative (KAMICO) to discuss the renewal of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Cooperative Partnership for Agricultural Machinery between DA and KAMICO, which will serve as the precursor for the proposed establishment of a common-shared agricultural machinery manufacturing assembly in the country.
To give a glimpse on the agricultural machinery manufacturing industry in South Korea, the delegation had a series of factory tours in major agricultural manufacturing companies namely Bulls Co., Ltd., Sungboo IND., Ltd., Asia Technology Co. Ltd., and Lee-Hwa Industry Co. as part of the visit. Ongoing collaborations to mechanize the Philippine agricultural industry were presented, including the prototype of the PhilMech-KAMICO corn mill project, fabrication of 500-kg and 1-tonner rice mills, machineries for the mechanization of garlic and onion production, and the lay out for the proposed 10-row rice seeder which will be tested for suitability and adaptability in local conditions this December 2022.
The event is hosted by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs (MAFRA) and sponsored by KAMICO, Daegu City, Farmers Newspaper, and Fit Corea Trading Phils., Inc. (KAMICO PH). ### (Office of the Assistant for Operations)
