Post Harvest Losses of Rice (Oriza Spp) From Harvesting to Milling: A Case Study in Besease and Nobewam in the Ejisu Juabeng District in the Ashanti Region of Ghana.
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Date
MAY 2010
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Abstract
Rice (Oriza sativa) is the most important staple food in the world, feeding almost half of the world’s population. Sub Saharan Africa rice imports accounts for more than 30% of the world’s imports even though it grows a lot of rice. Rice production notwithstanding, there are lots of post harvest losses of rice, these losses have however not been estimated for effective control. This study therefore aimed at estimating post harvest losses of rice from harvesting to milling and suggests critical areas of control. The study was carried out at “Besease” and “Nobewam” in the Ejisu Juabeng District of the Ashanti Region of Ghana to assess rice farmers perception and knowledge of post harvest losses in rice and to estimate post harvest losses that occur from harvesting to milling. The results of the survey showed that postharvest losses of rice were considered too high by 90% of the respondents (rice farmers) and that they needed interventions to reduce the losses.
The study showed that harvesting losses were higher (2.93%) when sickle harvesting method was used than when panicle harvesting method which resulted in 1.39% was used. Threshing losses were also higher (6.14%) when threshing was done using the “bambam” (a big locally made wooden box) than when the bag beating method (2.45%) was used. Harvesting losses ranged between 4.07% and 12.05% at farmer’s fields. Storage losses were 7.02% while drying losses were 1.66%. SB 30 milling machine was more efficient producing 67.3% head grains compared to SB 10 (50%) and the locally manufactured machine (47.3%). Post harvest losses from harvesting, threshing, drying, and storage were found to range from 11.10% to 27.14% with an average of 19.12%. SB 30 though more efficient than SB 10 and the local machine, does not produce competitive percentage head grains. Milling machines that produce higher percentage head grains has to be introduced to make local rice milling more economically competitive.
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A thesis submitted to the Board of Postgraduate Studies Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Science Degree in Post Harvest Physiology,