Harvesting Program is a technology that can be researched at the Food Proc Ctr in Tech Level 3. It costs 125 Food and 125 Carbon, and makes Farms produce +125 Food. In addition, Farm workers can carry +1 Food. Irrigation must be researched before it becomes available, and Harvesting Program is a requirement for Advanced Harvesting Program.
Like Irrigation, this technology is very important if the player relies on Farms for food, but can be completely ignored if the player uses other methods.
"Irrigation may be further enhanced with the Harvesting Program technology made available at Tech Level 3, which not only lets Farms produce more food before they have to be replanted, but also gives workers tending the fields a slightly increased food-carrying capacity."
—Manual description