Caribbean Postharvest Handling Availability in local crop production to alleviate food insecurity

Caribbean Postharvest Handling
Patrick E. Cortbaoui*, Michael O.
Ngadi
Availability in local crop production
to alleviate food insecurity
McGill University, Department of Bioresource
Engineering, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
*[email protected]
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1. Training sessions on Good Agricultural and Handling Practices
should be done at different supply chain segments.
Introduction
2. Controlling temperature, humidity and sunlight during the
handling process is crucial to reduce postharvest losses.
The Caribbean region is characterized by its tropical climate with year-round
sunshine, separated into dry and wet seasons. The environmental conditions
under which fresh horticultural commodities are produced, transported and
displayed have a significant effect on the keeping quality of the food and the
amount that is lost. A relevant problem in the region is “inefficient postharvest management practices” resulting in a high level of postharvest losses
and major issues of food quality and quantity.
3. The use of simple interventions, such as umbrellas or any bright
colored textiles to protect the produce from direct sunlight and
high temperature can significantly reduce postharvest quality
and quantity loss.
Tomato spoilage
Inadequate on-farm storage
Inappropriate crop display
4. Developing a user-friendly “Post-Harvest Quality Loss
Management Guide” for each segment of the supply chain in
CARICOM countries is necessary to illustrate several quality
management interventions.
This study was undertaken in St. Kitts-Nevis and Guyana to assess postharvest practices and losses during production and marketing of locally
grown fruits and vegetables (Tomato, String Beans, Eggplant, Cucumber and
Okra).
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Satellite images of Guyana and St. Kitts-Nevis (Google Earth, 2014)
2. Luning, A. P., & Marcelis, J. W. (2009). Food quality
management: Technicological and managerial principles and
practices. Wageningen Academic Publishers.
Results
Analysis
MCW
Comprehensive
assessment
PHL reduction
Supply chain settings
Preparation activities for fresh market
Methods
PHS
Food availability
SUBSISTENCE
FARMERS
COMMERCIAL
FARMERS
16 & 30% LOSS
5 & 20%
LOSS
Inappropriate on-farm
handling, limited markets
3. Van Dijk, M. P., & Trienekens, J. (2012). Global value chains:
Linking local producers from developing countries to
international markets. Amsterdam: European Association of
Development Research and Training Institutes.
Limited markets
RETAILERS
(street markets)
RETAILERS
(supermarkets)
38 & 27% LOSS
5 & 17%
LOSS
Non refrigerated storage
Environmental factors (T, 3RH,
Light)
REGULAR
CONSUMERS
SCHOOL MEAL
CENTRE
(children)
Refrigerated storage
Do not meet supermarket
standards
1 & 5% LOSS
Experiment set-up used to assess postharvest practices and losses using both Producer
Household Surveys (PHS) & Modified Count and Weigh (MCW) approaches.
References
1. Aulakh, J., & Regmi, A. (2013). Post-harvest food losses
estimation: development of consistent methodology. Food and
Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
Postharvest quality loss measurement for Okra, Eggplant and Cucumber
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Recommendations
Post-harvest losses map of string beans and tomato in St. Kitts-Nevis.
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Funding for this project was provided
by The Canadian International Food
Security Research Fund (CIFSRF),
which is a program of Canada’s
International Development Research
Centre (IDRC) undertaken with the
financial support of the Government of
Canada provided through Foreign
Affairs, Trade and Development
Canada (DFATD).