WHEN people think of improving food security, the focus is generally on improving production.
However, regional co-ordinator for south Asia and Africa with the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) John Dixon said working on the food supply chain could also be crucial in feeding more people in places such as Africa and the subcontinent.
“Without a doubt, there is quantity and quality of grain lost in the food chain, and it is worse for certain grains.
“There are more losses in pulses and maize, which have a softer coat, than in other staples such as rice and sorghum, which are harder,” said Dr Dixon, who is also ACIAR’s senior advisor of cropping systems and economics.
He said grain stored in third world areas was more susceptible to problems such as insect damage and mould, while there are also widespread problems with fungal diseases such as aflatoxin, a fungus prevalent in maize and groundnuts, which can cause death to those who eat contaminated grain in worst case scenarios.
But there is renewed interest in cutting post-harvest losses of staple crops in developing countries.
Dr Dixon said a second wave of investment in grain protection technologies was taking place, following a similar push in the 1980s.
“In the 1980s, there were big investments from many countries to cut back waste, especially in Africa, but not a lot of progress was made, and efforts stagnated a little.
“Now, there are some indications that things are moving in the right direction again, especially in south Asia, where you can walk into farmers’ houses and see silos with metal lids, where previously grain had been stored in sacks and was much more susceptible to damage.
“To a lesser extent, the same thing is also beginning to happen in Africa in places such as Kenya.
“There are now large enough volumes of grain about that the farmers can get local workshops to manufacture the silos for them.”
Dr Dixon also said there had been success with a micro-form of the grain bags popular in Australia.
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