Reducing On-Farm Food Losses
In the OIC Member Countries
48
Table 3.1: On-Farm Practices at Six Maize Farms in Uganda
Farm Details on Farm Quality Sort
by Consultant
for Extreme
Defects or
Decay
Quality Sort by
Consultant
For Moderate
Defects or
Decay
Notes on On-Farm
Practices for Maize
1 50 acres
SW Uganda
Crops: maize, tomatoes,
papaya, bananas, mangoes,
sweet pepper, coffee
10% 15% Dried in maize crib to
14% moisture, shelled
with motorized sheller,
stored on-farm for 1
month.
2 10 acres
SW Uganda
Crops: maize, beans,
cassava, cabbages,
tomatoes, coffee
30% 10% Dried on cobs on the
ground, shelled by
beating with sticks, 40%
was decayed in 3 weeks.
3 17 acres
SW Uganda
Crops: maize, beans,
potatoes, coffee, cassava,
cabbages, tomatoes
20% 15% Dried in the garden to
20% moisture,
motorized shelling,
stored in sacks for 1
month.
4 40 acres
SW Uganda
Crops: maize, coffee, beans,
potatoes, cassava, onions,
Passion fruits
45% 15% Dried on a tarpaulin on-
farm to 25% moisture,
shelled, stored for 1
month in woven sacks.
5 32 acres
SW Uganda
Crops: maize, beans,
potatoes, coffee, cassava,
onions, Jack fruits
10% 15% Dried on a tarpaulin on-
farm to 18% moisture,
shelled, stored for 1
month in woven sacks.
6 11 acres
SW Uganda
Crops: maize, beans,
cassava, watermelon,
coffee
15% 5% Dried on-farm on cobs to
18% moisture, shelled,
stored for 2 weeks in
woven sacks.
Range: 10-45% with extreme defects or decay after 2 weeks-one month of on-farm storage.
Conservative Estimate of On-Farm Losses: 10-15%
Source: Site Visits and Interviews Conducted During Assessment.
The consultant was not present during the harvest, but observed maize cobs left behind in the
field (estimated at 5%). Muyinza et al (2015) recently measured harvest losses for maize in
Uganda of 4%; followed by 20% losses after three months of storage on farm. The World Bank