Student Name: Brent Cupid

Student I.D: 98388

Differences between postharvest losses in developing countries and developed countries and challenges
faced by developing countries compared to developed.

The issues first start with the fact that measuring qualitative losses is harder than measuring
quantitative losses and that reduction of quantitative losses is a higher priority than reduction of
qualitative losses in developing countries than in developed ones. Since the strategies for reducing
postharvest losses in developing countries include the application of current knowledge to improve the
handling systems (especially packaging and cold chain maintenance) of horticultural perishables to
assure their quality and safety as well as overcoming the socioeconomic constraints, such as
inadequacies of infrastructure, poor marketing systems, weak R&D capacity , encouraging consolidation
and vertical integration among producers and marketers of horticultural crops , it means that these
various aspects are at a sub-par level in developing countries. An example of this is the fact that
elimination of defects from a given commodity before marketing is much less rigorous in developing
countries than in developed countries.

losses in developing countries vary greatly from 1 to 50% or even higher and
more of the losses occur between production and retail sites in developing than in developed countries.
There are several factors that may cause this, which include biological and environmental,
socioeconomical, inadequate market systems inadequate transport facilities, government regulations
and legislations, unavailability of needed tools and equipment, lack of information and general poor
maintenance. In the case of biological factors, the Caribbean and other developing nations tend to be
tropical or sub-tropical and have hotter climates and may cause faster rates of deterioration as the
respiration would be sped up as well as less access to proper refrigeration equipment due to either it
not being manufactured or imported enough in the country, or due to government restrictions. Poor
maintenance of facilities may also play a role in this. There is also less proper sanitation practiced in
developing nations as opposed to developed ones, further adding to their challenges faced. Many
developed nations on the other hand have colder periods in the year and have access to a wide range of
equipment and technology that would aid in fighting biological factors, and since consumer health and
satisfaction is a such a big priority they tend to have more rigorous sanitation programs and policies.
Inadequate marketing systems are a challenge in developing countries because of poor communication
between producers and receivers as well as lack of market information. Transportation costs and having
access to transportation itself also adds to this issue in developing countries. Developed countries tend
to have more organized transport systems, and superior communication between buyers and receivers
through ads or digital and precision farming methods in E-commerce.

Government regulations and legislations are another problem more greatly faced
by developing countries because the controls they have on wholesale and retail prices can encourage
fraud and provide no incentive for producing high quality produce or for postharvest quality
maintenance while in developed countries consumer dissatisfaction with produce quality results in a
greater percentage of the total postharvest losses and providing consumers with fruits and vegetables
that taste good is greatly encouraged and focused on. This may be a contributing factor as to why
improper sanitation and reducing quantitative losses is a higher priority than reduction of qualitative
losses are issues faced in developing countries.

The unavailability of needed tools and equipment creates a serious challenge

because many of them are not manufactured in the local market nor imported in sufficient quantity to
meet the demand. There are various government regulations in some countries that do not permit
direct importation by producers of their needs. This lack of access may also contribute to the poor
maintenance of some facilities in developing countries because they lack access to spare parts. This
issue likely also has a connection to why sanitation and the quality of produce in developing countries is
on a low, it all appears to be a domino effect. In developed countries however, all of the various tools
and equipment are far more likely to be manufactured and easily accessed by producers. Lack of
information is an issue among many individuals involved directly in harvesting, packaging, transporting,
and marketing because they have limited or no appreciation for the need for, or how to maintain
quality. Once again this adds to the reasons why the quality of produce is lower and the post-harvest
losses are greater in developing countries. Developed countries have effective and far-reaching
educational programs on these aspects through extension services.