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Lake Mainit Dried Fish Makers
Get Steam-Solar 'Pijanga" Dryer
MINDA Press Release: The tasty "Pijanga" dried fish, a delicacy produced by fisherfolk of Lake Mainit, the country's deepest, will soon be available in the supermarkets in sanitary and neat vacuum packs.
This week, the women dried fish makers of Jabonga, Agusan del Norte, received from the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) a Steam-Powered Fish Dryer designed and fabricated by an inventor from Butuan City.
"Pijanga," which belongs to the Goby family, thrives in the deep waters of Lake Mainit which has a depth of 223-meters.
It is a sought after delicacy for dried fish lovers.
The marketing of the Dried "Pijanga," however, is constrained by poor drying process which relies mainly on sunlight leaving the fish open to flies and dirt.
The Steam-Solar Fish Dryer was promised to the women of Lake Mainit following a visit I made in September last year to the town of Jabonga, one of the towns of Agusan del Norte and Surigao del Norte located in the shores of the 17,000-hectare lake.
Unlike the traditional fish drying method where the "Pijanga" was dried under the sun, the Steam-Solar Fish Dryer uses the heat of the steam and hot air blown into the plastic-roofed dryers.
The heat of the sun complements the drying process and since the dryers are covered, the dried fish is protected from dust or flies.
The Steam-Solar Fish Dryer, which includes a mini-boiler powered by biomass that heats the water to produce steam, allows the fishermen to dry fish even during rainy days or at night.
The set-up was designed by multi-awarded Mindanao inventor Engr. Rudy Cane after he was briefed by MinDA on what poor fisherfolk families needed to add value to their produce.
The set-up also includes either a Retort Machine which would allow the fisherfolk to produce bottled Spanish Sardines or a Vacuum-Packing Equipment.
Jabonga is the second fishing village in Mindanao to receive the Steam-Powered Fish Dryer which is one of the equipment to be included in the Fish Centers which MinDA will establish in 26 fishing grounds all over the region under the Mindanao Fisheries and Aquaculture Development Program (MINFAD).
The Fish Centers,which had been proposed to be funded by the European Union Grant for the MINPAD RISE Program, would also include ice-making facilities, blast freezers, cold storage and processing facilities.
While awaiting the release of the EU funds, MinDA is using its meager resources to immediately respond to the needs of fisherfolk families in the fishing villages of Mindanao.
The next towns to receive the Steam-Solar Fish Dryers would be Bunawan, Agusan del Sur, where fishermen produce dried Mudfish (Dalag) and Catfish, and Nasipit, Agusan del Norte where women produce bottled Spanish Sardines.
At least 10 other fishing villages, including island communities in Basilan, Sulu and Tawitawi, will also get the Steam-Solar Fish Drinh equipment.
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