Trukai will open new rice hulling mill in Lae

TRUKAI Industries Ltd will open its new hulling mill next Monday at its main operations base on Mataram Street in Lae.
The company said in a statement that the facility has a maximum production capacity of processing 240 tonnes of rice per week and becomes the vital final component that establishes a 100 per cent fully integrated process for domestic rice production in Papua New Guinea.
The large scale vertical integration process  would mean that for the first time, there would be an end-to-end solution for domestic production of rice in Papua New Guinea.”
Minister for Agriculture and Livestock and Benny Allen will be the guest of honour.
He will be joined by Trukai chairman Mark Robertson, public servants and a representative from the Chingwam Rice Growers Cooperative.
The crop was harvested in April/May this year with the cooperation of the Chingwam Rice Growers Cooperative.
The rice hulling mill was purchased from Vietnam.
According to the company, Trukai has invested heavily in the development of a domestic rice industry to date, with the mill representing a further expenditure of over K620,000.
It will provide the capability to process locally grown rice grown in the Markham Valley as part of Trukai Industries’ Markham Valley Rice Corridor Plan.
The plan incorporates rain-fed and irrigated rice from the National Agricultural Research Institute, its primary site at Chingwam where its rice development team will be planting 325 hectares in November and December this year.
Trukai has  invested nearly K200 million in setting up local mills, distribution centres, processing facilities and agricultural infrastructure including agricultural machinery.