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Maize ( Zea mays) is a staple in many developing countries but is known to be prone to pest (insects, birds, and rodents) and fungal infestation. In Guatemala, mycotoxin contamination of cultivated products may occur owing to such factors as environmental conditions and the use of traditional agriculture operations. To assess the current maize conditions in Guatemala, a small-scale study was performed. Mold and insect counts and mycotoxin (aflatoxin and fumonisin) concentrations were determined on 25 farms in two townships (Chiantla and Todos Santos) of the Huehuetenango Department. Total fungal counts were 3.6 to 6.83 log CFU/g with no significant differences ( P > 0.05) across farms at different altitudes. Farms where maize was not produced but was purchased were at higher risk of fumonisin contamination, whereas local producers were mostly affected by aflatoxins. Aflatoxin was present in maize from 100% of farms at 1.0 to 85.3 ppb, and fumonisin was detected on 52% of farms at 0.4 to 31.0 ppm. Average mycotoxin consumption amounts were above the recommended maximum intake for aflatoxin in both produced and purchased maize and above the provisional maximum tolerable daily intake for fumonisin in purchased maize. Estimated daily intake was 0.01 to 0.85 μg/kg of body weight per day for aflatoxin and 2.9 to 310.0 μg/kg of body weight per day for fumonisin. An entomological analysis revealed overall 32% prevalence of Ephestia kuehniella (flour moth), 16% prevalence of Sitophilus zeamais (maize weevil), and 8% prevalence of Tribolium sp. (flour beetle) on the analyzed farms. This study highlighted poor agricultural practices used in the highlands of Guatemala. Current practices should be revised for the production of maize that is safe for consumption by the population in this region.

Though several maize varieties have been developed and introduced over the years in Ghana, farmers still face challenges of access to quality seed maize. Among the major constraint is lack of proper drying systems to guarantee quality of seed produced. As in most parts of Africa, drying of maize in the open, on bare ground along shoulders of roads is still a common practice in Ghana. In this study, a 5-tonne capacity hybrid solar biomass dryer was developed for drying maize for seed and food/feed in Ghana. Effect of air temperature in the dryer on the physiological quality and germination of maize kernels was investigated. Maize grains were dried in the open sun simulating farmers practice and using the dryer at 4 varying levels (L1, L2, L3 and L4) with corresponding heights (0.6 m, 1.2 m, 1.8 m and 2.4 m, respectively) from the ground. Harvested maize at 22.8% moisture content was dried at the varying levels until reaching the final desired moisture content of 12.8% ± 0.2% (wb). Results showed that, air temperatures in the dryer increased in accordance with height with lowest mean temperature of 44.4˚C ± 4.6˚C recorded at L1 and mean maximum of 52.8˚C ± 5.4˚C at L4. Drying temperatures recorded at L1-L3 and ambient had no significant effect (p < 0.05) on kernel damage and viability. Drying conditions at L1-L3 were considered optimum (<50˚C) for kernel drying compared to the topmost tray, L4. Kernel stress crack index (multiple and checked) was therefore reduced on average by 14%

Anticipating the harvest period of soybean crops can impact on the post-harvest processes. This study aimed to evaluate early soybean harvest associated drying and storage conditions on the physicochemical soybean quality using of mathematical modeling and multivariate analysis. The soybeans were harvested with a moisture content of 18 and 23% (d.b.) and subjected to drying in a continuous dryer at 80, 100, and 120 °C. The drying kinetics and volumetric shrinkage modeling were evaluated. Posteriorly, the soybean was stored at different packages and temperatures for 8 months to evaluate the physicochemical properties. After standardizing the variables, the data were submitted to cluster analysis. For this, we use Euclidean distance and Ward's hierarchical method. Then defining the groups, we constructed a graph containing the dispersion of the values of the variables and their respective Pearson correlations for each group. The mathematical models proved suitable to describe the drying kinetics. Besides, the effective diffusivity obtained was 4.9 × 10–10 m2 s−1 promoting a volumetric shrinkage of the grains and influencing the reduction of physicochemical quality. It was observed that soybean harvested at 23% moisture, dried at 80 °C, and stored at a temperature below 23 °C maintained its oil content (25.89%), crude protein (35.69%), and lipid acidity (5.54 mL). In addition, it is to note that these correlations' magnitude was substantially more remarkable for the treatments allocated to the G2 group. Furthermore, the electrical conductivity was negatively correlated with all the physicochemical variables evaluated. Besides this, the correlation between crude protein and oil yield was positive and of high magnitude, regardless of the group formed. In conclusion, the early harvest of soybeans reduced losses in the field and increased the grain flow on the storage units. The low-temperature drying and the use of packaging technology close to environmental temperatures conserved the grain quality.