Within the framework of the project “Increasing the productivity of potato cultivation” financed with FNDR funds from the Biobío regional government and executed by INIA, not only was productivity quadrupled, but it also allowed for interaction with producers, with outstanding stories of life like that of the Trangulao sisters.
For four years, professionals from the Institute of Agricultural Research, INIA Quilamapu, carried out a project aimed at reducing production costs and obtaining better results in the potato harvest in the province of Arauco. This objective was achieved by incorporating new practices for the area, such as the use of certified seeds, controlled irrigation, soil analysis to detect nutrient needs, and blight control, considered the main fungal disease that affects crops. of potato.
Along with the increase in mumps production among farmers in the seven communes of the Arauco province, the human factor and the relationship generated between INIA professionals and producer families also stood out. Among them, one drew particular attention, because it was a nucleus made up of three sisters (Alejandra, Silvia and Elsa Trangulao) and their mother (Clorinda Neculqueo), all of them farmers, and with daily dedication to obtain potatoes with better caliber and higher yields.
“It is an example that women have a first class crop (…), they open a path and a new door in agriculture,” said Marcelino Claret, regional director of INIA Quilamapu, after meeting them on the property they have in Cañete, and see part of their activities.
The efforts of the Trangulao family for years have been oriented towards the production of potatoes, both for self-consumption and for commercialization. The increase in performance has been possible after the adoption of the INIA recommendations, in addition to the incorporation of machinery, where a family tractor stands out. Its agricultural activities are also complemented by the raising of sheep, chickens, pigs and cattle, and the cultivation of lupine, wheat and oats, among others.
The training given by INIA specialists allowed them to specialize in the production of seed potatoes with SAG certification, modify the warehouse especially suitable for storage, as well as participate in tours and learn about the reality of other potato producers in the country.
But the family situation was not always calm. The field was obtained from Conadi, and the sale of the forest that he had incorporated made it possible to purchase the tractor. In this way, a complex step through Santiago was left behind to seek better expectations, where the matriarch had to work as a home advisor to generate income.
The best tractor driver
Alejandra Trangulao’s day begins very early every morning. The attention of the animals and the smell of humid earth accompany her daily. She took the reins of the house economy and learned to work the family tractor.
But, it was not easy. After learning, not everyone wanted to hire her. “They will think that one does not know how to work or it is just because they are macho…, but little by little they got used to the fact that a woman was a tractor driver,” she indicated.
Despite the initial discrimination, he went ahead “with little trouble” to support the family. After several years, the situation has changed. “I feel better on top of a tractor, I feel stronger,” she said, after acknowledging that they call her from different sectors of the commune, and that she is recognized as the best in the area.
The life of the Trangulao family has taken a turn in recent times, returning to their roots and developing agriculture and, with it, feeling personal recognition and work in the fields.
