Reducing Postharvest Losses
In the OIC Member Countries
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animals, the high transaction costs of animal sale and the under-utilisation of slaughter by-
products. In OIC Member Countries where home slaughter is common, high postharvest losses
and public hygiene are related and serious concerns.
Milk and dairy
Reported postharvest losses in the dairy sector are high. Milk and dairy products are
perishable. This is exacerbated in many OIC Member Countries by the relatively high
incidence of small holder engagement in milk production (e.g., farms with 8-10 dairy animals).
A mixture of public and private infrastructure is needed to upgrade the milk and dairy value
chains, particularly setting standards (e.g., Uganda) organising farmers (e.g., Kenya) and
supporting the emergence of cool-chains. This finding was supported by survey respondents
who identified storage of dairy products as a major factor causing postharvest losses.
The milk and dairy case study in Uganda highlighted the challenges of adulteration in this
sector, a postharvest loss largely borne by the consumer.
Fish and Seafood Products
Postharvest losses in capture fisheries have, to a large extent, been addressed in recent years.
This reflects the scarcity and value of this resource. A more important emerging issue is
postharvest losses in aquaculture.
Since much fish is processed by small scale producers, many of the preservation methods and
recommendations that apply to durable crops also apply to processed fish products.
For fresh fish and seafood, investments in cold chains and improved postharvest handling
could substantially reduce postharvest losses and food safety concerns.
Common challenges/problems identified by the research
The issue of rodent losses in the postharvest chain is probably under-estimated (Singleton et
al., 2010). This seems to be particularly detrimental for grains, but, where durables are stored,
rodent damage and loss is an issue that has not received sufficient attention.
For all value chains, actions taken on farm (and therefore outside the purview of this study)
strongly impact on postharvest loss. Thus, cleaning (e.g., maize), drying (e.g., rice), sorting (e.g.
fish), packing (e.g., vegetables) and preserving (e.g., meat) before product leave the farm
profoundly impacts postharvest losses down-stream. A focus on improving upstream
practices and investments is essential to reduce later losses.
Aflatoxin is a growing threat to the viability of small holder value chains, largely because of
increased awareness by agribusinesses and consumers across OIC Member Countries.
Measure to manage mycotoxin contamination exist, but have a cost implication that threatens
to create a dual economy in may place of aflatoxin free (mainly commercial agriculture) and
contaminated (mainly small holder). Where contamination was common, it was found that
losses were not as high as a market is usually found. The knock-on impact on public health of
this phenomena should be a concern for policy makers in OIC Member Countries.
Many of the chains reviewed would benefit from development of cold-chain infrastructure
(meat, fish, dairy, vegetables and fruit), and this is an area where OIC Member Countries can
make strategic investments to reduce postharvest losses.
The existence of policies supporting strategic crops has, in some cases, led to a history of
under-investment in postharvest management by the private sector, but has also ensured