By Cliff Chiduku
A visit to Zimbabwe’s biggest agricultural market, Mbare Musika or any other mass market is quite revealing. At the market, you can find anything from fruits, vegetables grains, among others. There is always a hive of activity.
However, what usually catches the eye of visitors are rotten vegetables and fruits. At the moment, it is evident that Mbare Musika is experienced a high supply shock at a time there is limited effective demand for the farm produce. The vendors at Harare’s popular market have no capacity to prolong the shelf life of their produce – a phenomena referred to good year problem in economics. This means that most of the produce will go to waste. Post-harvest losses are common when the market experiences a good year problem.
Since Zimbabwe had a bumper harvest this season owing to good rains and various government interventions, farmers always find it difficult to manage their harvest leading to post-harvest losses.
Reducing post-harvest losses is critical in promoting food and nutrition security, improved livelihoods and job creation as enunciated in the National Development Strategy 1. Post-harvest management is closely linked to United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 2 of creating a world free of hunger and poverty by 2030. For Zimbabwe to achieve an upper middle-class economy by 2023, emphasis should be put on minimising post-harvest losses.
Estimates from the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) estimates from 2011 suggest that as much as 37% of food produced in sub-Saharan Africa is lost between production and consumption. Estimates for cereals are 20.5 percent. For post-harvest handling and storage loss only, the FAO estimate is 8%. FAO also noted that 30% of food produced for human consumption is lost or wasted along the supply chain every year.
A research by the University of Zimbabwe Department of Soil Science and Agricultural Engineering shows that Zimbabwe has an average maize post-harvest loss of about 18,5 percent, roughly worth about US$259 per tonne while for sorghum, the figure is pegged at 12,5 percent which translates to a loss of US$175 per tonne. The post-harvest losses are mainly due to destruction during storage by insects and pests. Below are some of the interventions to reduce post-harvest losses.
One of the main impediments preventing farmers from reducing post-harvest losses is lack of financial capacity to procure proper post-harvest facilities and insecticides. Improving access to cheap capital for farmers is critical to enable them to reduce these losses.
Researches have revealed that farmers are not willing to invest in facilities that can reduce food losses if they cannot sell their produce and make a profit. So what it means is that linking farmers to profitable markets is a step in the right direction to increase investment in food loss reduction activities. One of the mandates of the Agricultural Marketing Authority (AMA) is to create market linkages. AMA has programmes in place where the authority links farmers to profitable markets as a way to reduce food losses. This is after the authority realised that small-holder farmers have no capacity to invest in equipment to prolong the shelf life of their produce.
One of the most critical solutions to reduce post-harvest losses, especially for oil seeds and grains, is the improvement of storage facilities. The most commonly used options are drums, granaries, silos and bags, which can reduce losses to almost zero if correctly used, allowing farmers to improve their food security status.
In the grain value chain, most losses in quantity and quality occur during storage and are due to improper drying. This leads mould damage and aflatoxin contamination, two of the major causes of losses in grains. However, farmers are advised to acquire proper grain drying equipment, from tarpaulins and covers, to grain drying equipment and shelters that protect their harvest from rain. They can also outsource storage facilities from the Grain Marketing Board to eliminate post-harvest losses.
The highest levels of losses occur in the fresh produce value chain, particularly for fruits and vegetables, fish, meat and milk. Heat is one of the prime causes of spoilage for fresh farm produce, and lack of cold chain equipment and infrastructure has resulted in huge losses. The acquisition of appropriate cooling equipment can substantially reduce losses of fresh produce. Those in rural areas can reduce losses by employing traditional preservation methods such as drying, salting and preboiling, among others.
Some farmers who live in remote rural areas usually lack transport infrastructure to take their produce to ready markets. This has prevented them from accessing markets, increasing transport time and the risk of damaging their produce. Improving transport infrastructure to the last mile can have a significant impact on the reduction of these food losses.
Collective storage facilities can be a solution for farmers who lack the means to acquire on-farm storage technologies, which enables them to safely store their crops while they wait for prices to increase. With increasing formalisation of warehouse receipt programmes such as the one operated by the Zimbabwe Mercantile Exchange, this could be a game changer as they link farmers with improved access to storage facilities and finance.
Although a lack of equipment and infrastructure is a key constraint that leads to post-harvest losses, lack of capacity by farmers should not be underestimated. Training farmers on post-harvest handling and storage of crops is key to reducing food losses. For example, skills in timing of harvest, drying, moisture management and storage are essential skills that many farmers require.
Solving the problem of post-harvest losses, and building safe, long-term storage for harvest will no doubt have a positive impact on the financial lives of farmers, as well as the health of communities through improved food and nutrition security, besides benefiting the environment.
Word from the market is a column produced by the Agricultural Marketing Authority (AMA) to promote market-driven production. Feedback cchiduku@ama.co.zw or WhatsApp/Call +263781706212.
