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Post Harvest Losses
Post Harvest Losses
B.Sc(Hons)Agri. 2ndSemester(even)
1) Firdoos Abbas ( 15-arid-5277)
2) M Riaz ( 15-arid-5314)
3) M Qasim Mir ( 15-arid-5312)
4) Ashiq Hussain (15-arid-5268)
5) Ejazullah (15-arid-5274)
6) Samiullah (15-arid-5340)
Post Harvest losses
of Horticultural
Crops
Introduction
Control of
post harvest Losses
losses
Post Harvest
losses of
horticultural
crops
Factors
Secondary affecting
causes post harvest
losses
Primary
cause
INTRODUCTION
• It is any change in the quantity or quality of
produce after harvest that prevents or
alters its intended use or decrease its value.
Post-harvest losses occur between harvest and the
moment of human consumption. They include on-farm
losses, such as when grain is threshed, winnowed and
dried, as well as losses along the chain during
transportation, storage and processing.
Agriculture plays a major role in Pakistan's economy
contributing 25 percent to the GDP
Within agriculture the horticulture i.e. fruits,
vegetables and floriculture is an important sub-sector
Horticulture share 12% in agriculture value addition
High post harvest losses (20-40%)
Including 5-8 per cent at the time of harvesting, 15-
20 per cent during the management of harvested
crop, five per cent during storage and 10-12 per cent
at the time of transportation of these fruits and
vegetables.
The magnitude of postharvest losses in fresh fruits
and vegetables is an estimated 5 to 25 percent in
developed countries and 20 to 50 percent in
developing countries, depending upon the commodity.
Asia :
Losses of cereals and oil seeds are lower,
about 10-12%, according to food Cooperation
of India.
Packaging
Wooden Boxes
Belly Packing
Lose Packing
Transportation
Farm to Pack House
Pack House to Market
Storage
Temporary storage
Cold Storage
Marketing
Improper Grading
Infrastructure
Factors affecting post harvest losses
Severalfactors influence post harvest losses in fruits
and vegetables
These include :
Physical
Physiological
Mechanical
Hygienic condition
Certain other factors :
Insect and mite attacks
Disease due to non infectious pathogens
Pathological rots
Environmental factors:
Temperature
Relative
humidity
Oxygen balance
Primary Causes
Mechanical injury
Pathological Action
Environmental factors
Secondary Causes
Inadequate harvesting
Inadequate transportation facilities
Inadequate marketing system
Unavailability of needed tools and equipments
Lack of information
Mechanical Injury
Caused by careless handling during harvesting,
packaging, transportation, & storage
Mites & birds are also responsible for mechanical
injury
Mechanical injuries like bruising & cracking of fruits
and vegetables render them more prone to attack by
organisms & significantly increase rate of water loss
and gaseous exchange
Fruits and vegetables receive maximum mechanical
injury during harvesting if proper means of pickling
and harvesting are not adopted
Pathological Action
Fruits & vegetables are also prone to microbial
spoilage caused by fungi, bacteria, yeast & mould
Beside attacking fresh fruits and vegetables these
organisms also cause damage to canned and processed
products
It is estimated that 36% of vegetable decay is caused
by soft rot bacteria
The most common pathogens causing rots in fruits and
vegetables are fungi such as Alternaria, Rhizopus,
Penicillium, Fusarium and among bacteria Erwinia &
Pseudomonas cause extensive damage
Environmental factors
Temperature
Relative humidity
Gas composition
Temperature
Most important environmental factors that influences
deterioration of harvested commodities
Rate of deterioration of perishable however increase
two to three fold with every 10 C increase in
temperature
High temperature also increase rate of respiration in
fruits and vegetables which subsequently lead to
break down of inner tissues
Relative Humidity
High temp & relative humidity favour growth of
microorganisms which cause extensive damage to the
produce
Decaying of fruits & vegetables are increased by high
temperature coupled with high relative humidity
Secondary Cause
Inadequate harvesting
Inadequate marketing system
Inadequate transportation facilities
Inadequate storage facilities
Lack of information
Poor maintenance
Inadequate Harvesting & Handling
Inadequate harvesting facilities and rough handling
during harvesting cause great losses
Besides use of improper machinery & equipment in
mechanical harvesting cause serious loss
Harvesting of fruits and vegetables during rain or
immediately after rain creates condition favorable for
decay organisms
Harvesting during hotter part of the day results in
faster senescence, shrivelling & wilting of fruits and
vegetables
Inadequate Transportation Facilities
In most developing countries, roads are not adequate
for proper transport of horticultural crops
Also, transport vehicles and other modes, especially
those suited for fresh horticultural perishables, are
in short supply
The majority of producers have small holdings and
cannot afford their own transport vehicles
Longer shipment and distribution period eventually
cause heavy losses
Inadequate Marketing System
Growers can produce large quantities of good-quality
fruits, ornamentals, and vegetables, but, if they do
not have a dependable, fast, and equitable means of
getting such commodities to the consumer, losses will
be extensive
It is accentuated by lack of communication between
producers and receivers, and lack of market
information
Sometimes growers do not know about market
demands of fruits and vegetables, it cause losses
Inadequate Storage facilities
Inadequate storage facilities at producing or
marketing centre leave the produce to natural causes
of losses i-e decay by organisms, respiration,
transpiration and other biochemical reactions
Inadequate storage facilities causes serious losses to
high perishable fruits and vegetable
A well developed storage facilities is needed to
increase shelf life of horticultural products
Lack of Information
Human element in postharvest handling of
horticultural commodities is extremely important
Most growers do not know well about harvesting,
packaging, transporting, and marketing or how, to
maintain quality, due to lack of information, which
causes extensive losses
An effective and far-reaching educational (extension)
program on these aspects is needed critically now and
will continue to be essential in the future
Poor Maintenance
In many developing countries, some good facilities
that were built a few years ago are currently “out of
order” or not functioning properly because of lack of
maintenance and unavailability of spare parts.
This problem is especially true of public-sector
facilities
Any new project should include in its plan adequate
funds for maintenance to ensure its success and
extended usefulness.
Control of Post Harvest Losses
Adequate harvesting and handling practices
Better transportation facilities
Better storage facilities
Better marketing system
Dissemination of information technology