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In mechanised harvesting, processing may also begin as part of the actual harvest process, with initial cleaning and sorting performed by the harvesting machinery. Initial post-harvest storage conditions are critical to maintaining quality. Each crop has an optimum range of storage temperature and humidity.
Gleaning is the act of collecting leftover crops in the field after harvest. During harvest, there is food that is left or missed often because it does not meet store standards for uniformity. Sometimes, fields are left because they were not economically profitable to harvest.
In Africa, post-harvest losses of maize from harvest to market sale are believed to amount to around 10-20%. Approximately 40% of these losses occur during storage at the farm and market, 30% during processing (drying, threshing, and winnowing), 20% in transport from the field to the homestead/farm, and the remaining 10% during transport to market.
Different food preservation methods have different impacts on the quality of the food and food systems. Some traditional methods of preserving food have been shown to have a lower energy input and carbon footprint compared to modern methods. [3] [2] Some methods of food preservation are also known to create carcinogens.
Post-harvest losses of vegetables and fruits occur at all points in the value chain from production in the field to the food being placed on a plate for consumption. Post-harvest activities include harvesting , handling, storage , processing , packaging , transportation and marketing .
Curing is a technique for preservation of (usually edible) vegetable material. It involves storing the material in a prescribed condition immediately after harvest. It involves storing the material in a prescribed condition immediately after harvest.
Additionally, the hurdle effect of food preservation, such as by adding lactic acid bacteria and salt to a food product, is illustrated and described. [ 11 ] [ 12 ] [ 13 ] This figure illustrates the pathway of food preservation followed by lactic acid bacteria involving nisin , as well as the pathway of food preservation followed by salt.
There are several methods of storage that require only simple and cheap building materials. The most commonly used are pit storage, clamp storage and indoor storage. These techniques are used only sporadically, however, as most farmers practice sequential harvesting, in which tubers are left in the ground until needed. [4]