Seed processing plants in Shwebo District expected to run for monsoon rice crop this year

The seed processing plants and warehouses are constructed in Shwebo District, Sagaing Region under the Seed Project of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). They are expected to run during the harvest time of the monsoon rice crops this year, said U Tin Maung Swe, head of Shwebo District Agriculture Department.
In a bid to promote the utilization of pedigree seed for rice crop cultivation on the project areas in Shw ebo District, the construction of seed processing plants and warehouses started in the first week of October 2019 and finished in December 2020.
“The plant still cannot run as the foreign experts were not able to come last year. This plant is designated for seed purification and it can start operation when the fresh rice crop is harvested. After processing the seeds, they will be transferred to the department. The department will hand over them to the related organization. The plant is scheduled to run the trial in December”, U Tin Maung Swe elaborated.
The plants and warehouses are located in Wetlet, Shwebo and KhinU townships, categorizing Type A, B and C. Type A includes two dryers while type B has only one dryer. However, Type C does not have a dryer. A seed dryer can process 750 rice baskets within 12 hours.
“The Seed Project aims to disseminate the classification and grading of pedigree seeds, including the seed size, colour and pest-free quality. This project will benefit the farmers and create more market opportunities for traders”, U Win Hlaing U, an officer of Sagaing Region Agriculture Department stated.
The Seed Project covers Shwebo, Wetlet, KhinU, Dabayin and Tantse townships in the Sagaing Region with the help of JICA’s loan.
The Agriculture Department, the growers, pedigree seed processing bodies and companies are working together to extract pedigree rice seed for the growers. — Lu Lay/GNLM