The Department of Science and Technology (DOST), through its Sorsogon provincial office, has released a PHP520,000 grant to establish an accelerated coconut water vinegar production for a farmers’ association in Barcelona town early this week.

In a phone interview on Thursday, DOST-Sorsogon Provincial Director Sandro Noguera said the assistance provided to the Banana Lakatan Cultivators Association (BLCA) will improve and boost the traditional method of vinegar making and increase the farmers’ income and production.

“The grant was downloaded to the local government unit (LGU) of Barcelona last April 16. The LGU (local government unit) will procure one unit of acetator machinery that will be given to the BLCA. With the new technology, it is expected to shorten acetic acid fermentation from five months to one to six days. Ibig sabihin mas mabilis na sila makaka-produce ng suka, mas madami na silang maproduce dahil sa acetator kit (This means that they can produce vinegar faster, they can produce more because of the acetator kit),” Noguera said.

He said before the DOST provided the grant, about 40,374 liters of coconut water were being wasted annually by BLCA during copra production, instead of being utilized in producing other products like vinegar.

“There will be an increase in gross sales by 82.15 percent from PHP1.58 million to PHP2.88 million in the first year of implementation. The new technology will also generate additional employment for five individuals from Barcelona,” he added.

Noguera said they will conduct technical training for the 78 association members on the proper use of acetator for fermentation, calculation, food safety and analysis.

“We will monitor them monthly as to the operation of the technology and for three years, we will help them for the duration of the project,” he said. (PNA)