With the abaca stripping machine, four persons can harvest one hectare of abaca plantation in 7-8 days. It weighs only 93 kg and can be dismantled and carried in areas not accessible by transportation. It can strip native abaca varieties by replacing stripping blades for variable quality, recovery, and output.
The Abaca Coalition witnessed the transfer of four abaca stripping machines to the communities of Maac, Mahayahay, Javier and Maria Plana in Sogod, Southern Leyte. The machine is designed and developed by the National Abaca Research Center based at the Visayas State University in Baybay, Leyte. The machines were purchased through a research and development grant from the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-PCAARRD). An economically important crop indigenous to the Philippines, abaca is the lifeblood of more than 200,000 farming families from 56 abaca growing provinces. It boasts of high demand as raw material for textile, handicrafts, specialty papers, and just recently as dashboards and interior for cars, among other products.