Quantifying postharvest losses along a commercial tomato supply chain in Fiji: A case study

Underhill, Steven J. R.; Kumar, Salesh

doi:10.37855/jah.2015.v17i03.37

Cited by 11 publications

(9 citation statements)

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“…On-farm postharvest loss for Fijian smallholder farmer tomato value chains was between 26.1% to 27.6%. This finding is consistent with quantification of postharvest loss in Fijian tomato chains by the direct determination method [5]. This would imply that Fijian smallholder farmers are aware of the extent of their postharvest loss but possibly not the specific determinants, or they lack the physical capacity or economic incentives to remediate against loss.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 82%

“…Elevated loss during on-farm storage and packaging (collectively 12.1% in Sigatoka Valley and 14.1% in eastern Viti Levu) were likely to reflect poor harvesting practice and temperature management. Postharvest diseases were particularly prevalent during on-farm ripening and storage, consistent with prior studies [5]. However, the specific postharvest pathogens involved were not determined.…”

Section: Loss During On-farm Postharvest Handling Practicesupporting

confidence: 82%

“…The Fiji Islands, like many developing countries, are thought to incur high rates of horticultural postharvest loss [1][2][3][4][5][6]. Quantifying this loss at a national level, while useful in terms of providing a basis for wider regional comparisons, is often compromised due to variable production practice, crop-type, seasonality, and socio-economic factors [7][8][9].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This study will also aid smallholder farmer's decision making by presenting anticipated levels of postharvest loss associated with various handling practice options. Tomato was selected as the study crop because it is an important commercial horticultural crop in Fiji, and the subject of several prior value chain studies [5,18,19].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Smallholder Farmer Perceptions of Postharvest Loss and Its Determinants in Fijian Tomato Value Chains

Kumar

Underhill

2019

Horticulturae

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The Fiji Islands, like many small Pacific island nations, are thought to incur high rates of postharvest loss. Little work has been undertaken to quantify the amount of loss within Pacific horticultural value chains, or identify the key determinants. This study sought to quantify postharvest loss within Fijian smallholder tomato value chains and to examine the relative importance of current on-farm practices as possible contributors to this loss. A semi-structured survey of 115 smallholder tomato farmers in Sigatoka Valley and eastern Viti Levu was undertaken, covering socio-economic and demographic parameters, production and postharvest handling practice, and postharvest loss based on farmer recall. On-farm postharvest loss for smallholder farmer tomato value chains was between 26.1% in Sigatoka Valley and 27.6% in eastern Viti Levu. This finding was consistent with quantification of postharvest loss in Fijian tomato chains by direct determination, but is relatively high when compared to smallholder tomato value chain loss in Sub-Saharan Africa. When Fijian tomato value chains were segregated according to specific postharvest handling practice, the contributors to postharvest loss were often associated with on-farm decision-making. Those value chains that only harvested once a week, or in the early morning (before 7 am) or mid-day onwards, stored harvest product in the field for more than three hours, did not sort or grade prior to on-farm ripening, or used packing sheds that had relatively open designs, all had consistently higher levels of postharvest loss. The prevalence of specific postharvest handling practice in both locations is further reported. While this study highlights the impact of current on-farm postharvest handling practices on tomato value chain loss, what remain unclear are the underlying drivers associated with current postharvest handling behaviour and the decision-making that shapes quality and logistic control activities.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 82%

Section: Loss During On-farm Postharvest Handling Practicesupporting

confidence: 82%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Smallholder Farmer Perceptions of Postharvest Loss and Its Determinants in Fijian Tomato Value Chains

Kumar

Underhill

2019

Horticulturae

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“…Postharvest market loss was determined using vendor recall, consistent with other recent Pacific market loss studies [18,19]. This method excludes on-farm loss, does not include consumer waste nor does it account for potential re-use of market loss for non-human consumption (i.e., product used for animal feed).…”

Section: Data Collectedmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Preliminary Assessment of Horticultural Postharvest Market Loss in the Solomon Islands

2019

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Honiara’s fresh horticultural markets are a critical component of the food distribution system in Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands. Most of the population that reside in Honiara are now dependent on the municipal horticultural market and a network of smaller road-side markets to source their fresh fruits and vegetables. Potentially poor postharvest supply chain practice could be leading to high levels of postharvest loss in Honiara markets, undermining domestic food security. This study reports on a preliminary assessment of postharvest horticultural market loss and associated supply chain logistics at the Honiara municipal market and five road-side markets on Guadalcanal Island. Using vendor recall to quantify loss, we surveyed a total of 198 vendors between November 2017 and March 2018. We found that postharvest loss in the Honiara municipal market was 7.9 to 9.5%, and that road-side markets incurred 2.6 to 7.0% loss. Based on mean postharvest market loss and the incidence of individual vendor loss, Honiara’s road-side market system appears to be more effective in managing postharvest loss, compared to the municipal market. Postharvest loss was poorly correlated to transport distance, possibly due to the inter-island and remote intra-island chains avoiding high-perishable crops. Spatial mapping of postharvest loss highlighted a cohort of villages in the western and southern parts of the main horticultural production region (i.e., eastern Guadalcanal) with atypically high levels of postharvest loss. The potential importance of market-operations, packaging type, and mode of transport on postharvest market loss, is further discussed.

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Postharvest Loss in Fruit and Vegetable Markets in Samoa

Underhill

Sherzad

Zhou

et al. 2019

Food Security in Small Island States

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Quantifying postharvest losses along a commercial tomato supply chain in Fiji: A case study

Cited by 11 publications

References 0 publications

Smallholder Farmer Perceptions of Postharvest Loss and Its Determinants in Fijian Tomato Value Chains

Smallholder Farmer Perceptions of Postharvest Loss and Its Determinants in Fijian Tomato Value Chains

A Preliminary Assessment of Horticultural Postharvest Market Loss in the Solomon Islands

Postharvest Loss in Fruit and Vegetable Markets in Samoa

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