Harvesting the new sesame variety 'Haniol' with a combine harvester. Courtesy of the Eastern Agricultural Technology Center [Halla Ilbo] It seems that the burden of labor on farmers will be reduced as mechanical harvesting is now possible for sesame harvesting, which was previously done by hand.The Jeju Special Self-Governing Province Agricultural Research and Extension Services Eastern Agricultural Technology Center announced on the 31st that a new variety of sesame, 'Haniol', which has ripe grains but still remains in the pod, can be harvested using a combine, reducing labour by up to 98% compared to using manpower. This time, the 'Haniol' being experimentally cultivated is a variety developed by the National Institute of Crop Science, Rural Development Administration for mechanical harvesting. It has good seed attachment and can be used to simultaneously perform stem cutting and grain shaking. Until now, sesame cultivation has been busiest in the hot months of July and August, and most farming work is done by hand, requiring a lot of labor. In particular, if it rains during the drying period of sesame, it requires labour to cover it with transparent plastic and secure it so that it does not blow away in the wind. In the case of the 'Haniol' experimental cultivation, it took 32.6 hours to harvest 10a of sesame using manual labor as usual, but it was shortened to 30 minutes when using a combine, reducing labor by 98%.In addition, the grain shaking work is usually done more than twice, and the inconvenience of having to cover it with transparent plastic and secure it to avoid rain during the drying process after the first work has been resolved. An official from the Eastern Agricultural Technology Center explained that sesame cultivation (May to August) is possible as a follow-up crop to winter radish, which is sown in September and harvested in April, and that increased income is expected due to improved cropping systems.