Garlic is an important and favorite ingredient in Taiwanese cooking. Taiwan grows garlic, but handling the garlic before it is sold at the market is a strain on the farmers’ hands. Now Taiwan has come up with a machine to automate that process.
Taiwan produced more than 41,000 metric tons of garlic in the last five years on close to 4,500 hectares of land. Yunlin County produces the biggest share, at 92%.
However, in order to keep garlic cloves dry and fresh, you have to trim the roots, which otherwise store moisture and can attract bugs. The hours it takes using scissors to trim the roots are tiring on the hands and wrists. This year, though, the Agricultural Research and Extension Station in Tainan has invented a machine that can trim 36 metric tons of garlic cloves in one hour. By hand, it’s only possible to trim two metric tons in the same amount of time.
The invention is smaller in size and easier to assemble than similar gadgets created in other countries. And it’s cheaper too. The patented ‘garlic grinder’ is a savior for garlic farmers in Taiwan. Its inventors hope it will soon make its way into the international market.