Cruz likewise encouraged participants, saying that joining contests such as the RICE is very important. “My career (as an inventor) started after I won in the Department of Science and Technology’s Philippine Council for Industry and Energy Research and Development award,” he said. “Other participants had entries on alternative energy while I had something about bangus. (milkfish)”

But he won, and that started his long and successful career in creating products that he later successfully marketed. His awarded technology, the kinetic fish feeder, has been out in the market, helping aqua-farmers simplify their feeding management.

Cruz also developed an all-weather sea cage for farming fish which used less expensive raw materials but same quality and sold it at a fraction of the cost of its imported counterpart. His success in creating innovative products that had high market potentials earned him the recognition of DOST as one of the 50 Men and Women in Science in 2008.

RICE 6, to run from Oct. 19-21 in Iloilo City, features 74 entries from Western Visayan creative researchers and inventors vying for three categories, namely the Invention Category (Tuklas Award);  Utility Model Category,  Industrial Design Category, Creative Research Category (Likha Award); and the Student Research Categories for both the  College  and High School levels (Sibol Award).

According to DOST 6 Regional Director Rowen Gellonga, winners in said categories will qualify for the National Invention Contest and Exhibit in 2012. DOST’s Technology Application and Promotion Institute also provides technical and funding support to winners who will compete in both national and international invention contests (Framelia V. Anonas, S&T Media Service)