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Information on forest technology for the most underserved producers in the Aysén Region

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• Through the delivery of machinery, the aim is to reduce productivity gaps, increase the production and quality of firewood and other timber products, and improve the beneficiaries' quality of life by significantly reducing their physical effort.

The team from the Patagonia Forest Institute (Infor), an agency under the Ministry of Agriculture, traveled to the southernmost territories of the Aysén Region to carry out a packed agenda of activities in the communes of Cochrane, Tortel, and Villa O’Higgins. This included visits to participants of the Capitán Prat Forestry Program, funded by the Regional Government and its council, which enables beneficiaries to train in the use of new tools for working with cutting-edge technology.

Regarding this, the manager of Infor Patagonia, Jaime Salinas, stated that the work carried out in this program "allowed us, as the Government, to reach the most isolated areas of the region to provide technological support to firewood producers."

"Here, a knowledge transfer effort by the Infor team came together to ensure the proper use of the forest, incorporating technology that rotates among beneficiaries. This, in turn, allows them to increase their family income and contributes to harmonious, equitable, and solidarity-based territorial development," he explained.

From the axe to the firewood processor

Among the activities carried out, a meeting with the Baker Native Timber and Wood Producers Committee stood out. This group, recently formed under Infor's guidance, consists of 20 timber and firewood producers, artisans, furniture makers, and men and women who work with wood from the forests of southern Aysén.

In Cochrane, a series of producers from the Los Ñadis, Laguna el Diablo, and Tres Lagos sectors were visited to assess the condition of firewood-cutting machines and to deliver sacks for the storage and commercialization of quality firewood that meets the requirements of current legislation.

Later, the Infor team traveled to Villa O’Higgins to visit Florentino Gómez, a producer from the Río Mayer sector, who was one of the beneficiaries of the Program that provided him with a firewood processor. "Before, it was all done with an axe, then we moved to chainsaws, and now Infor brings this machinery, which for us is very advanced technology. It's great—it helped me a lot," he said.

The journey continued to Lago Christie, located 54 km northeast of Villa O'Higgins, to deliver a German-made log splitter to Oreste Mansilla, who works alongside Jovan Campos in local timber and firewood production.

"Today, we have an Infor machine on loan, which has been very useful in our processes. Here, we process timber and firewood from the other side of Lago Christie and transport it by boat. The machinery helps us optimize time, especially in production, reducing physical effort and improving volume output. So... very happy," Campos expressed, also grateful for Infor's ongoing support.

"We have received support from Infor for several years now, through knowledge-sharing via talks, sawmill-related courses, and training in firewood processing with machinery," he added.

Finally, reaching these remote areas, where transportation is exclusively by sea, helps balance access to opportunities for people and brings state support to the most isolated places in Chile.