Preliminary study on improved postharvest practices for tomato loss reduction in Nigeria, Rwanda and India

Abstract

Tomato production is increasing along with postharvest losses in Nigeria, Rwanda and India. Modified Commodity Systems Assessment Methodology on tomato was conducted in the study areas during the July – August 2017 harvest season to evaluate the costs and benefits of improved postharvest practices or technologies that will reduce losses in the value chain. The use of colour chart as maturity index to harvest tomato fruit at breaker stage for long distant market in Rwanda when adopted showed that tomatoes were better protected from mechanical injury during handling and generated an immediate increased profit of US$170 for each 1000 kg load when compared with handling tomato fruit harvested at full ripe stage. In Nigeria, the use of a Zero Energy Cooling Chamber (ZECC) resulted in reduction of tomato loss to five percent when compared with the current practice of immediate sales of harvested produce with loss of 40%. This simple ZECC technology and use of Reusable Plastic Crates (RPC) reduced loss from 30% to 10% and increased the earnings of the farmer/trader in Rwanda. In comparison, in India the use of maturity indices and RPCs during harvesting and transport of tomato was common, and resulted in lower postharvest losses during marketing.

Keywords:

• cost and benefits
• commodity system assessment
• fruit vegetable
• handling
• postharvest loss

Acknowledgements

We appreciate the efforts of Samuel Lusweti and Noel Valentin Mulinda (Rwanda), Elizabeth Ojetayo Abiola (Nigeria) and Nagalaxmi Raman (India) for assistance during the field work assessments.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

The project was funded by the World Bank Group. The project was supervised by Agribusiness Associates Inc. USA in collaboration with the Postharvest Education Foundation, USA.