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Bigger
future awaits the sago palms in the country as the Visayas State
University (VSU) and the Japan Society of Sago Palm Studies collaborated
in conducting the 9th International Sago Symposium last 19 July
2007 at Ormoc City.
The symposium
encouraged the government and the private sector to add more efforts
in promoting the palm as a source of starch and feedstock for ethanol
production. Initial efforts on this have been done by VSU, the University
of the Philippines Mindanao, and research and development (R&D)
agencies in CARAGA.
The palm has
the potential to uplift economic and social conditions in the countryside,
especially in the Visayas and Mindanao regions. It promotes and
supports the sustainability of wetlands but sago palms also grow
well in well drained areas. Technologies to enhance the cultivation
of the plant can lead to the development of the sago industry.
While only few
studies have been conducted on sago, some initiatives have significantly
contributed to the development of the industry. One is the efficient
grater machine jointly developed by the Tokyo University of Agriculture
and Technology (TUAT) - Bio-Applications Systems Engineering (BASE)
in Japan and the Philippines Rootcrop Research and Training Center
(PhilRootcrops) in VSU.
The machine
allows starch extraction from a whole sago plant in less than a
day, which is normally a very tedious process.
VSU and TUAT
also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for two research
projects on sago – (i) Nutrient and Water Balance for Sago
Intercropped with Taro Inventory; and (ii) Starch Profiling of Sago
in Region VIII.
Meanwhile, PCARRD
has supported the interest of R&D stations in the CARAGA region
on sago. Sago has been prioritized in the PCARRD Integrated S&T
Agenda 2006-2010. The regional R&D priorities for sago include
sustainable palm development and management for starch and ethanol
production, similar to what Malaysia has been doing.
Another important
research area is the study on biopress technology for biofuel production.
Seldom
seen in the R&D limelight, the sago palm is by far the most
important starch-bearing palm species. More than 200 kilograms of
sago starch can be produced from single palm with other parts unutilized.
The sago starch can also be used as adhesive in paper, textiles,
and plywood, in making noodles and monosodium glutamate or MSG among
others. (Pia Paula P. Mateo, S&T Media Service)
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