Storage: Food Cycle Technology Source Book: Food Cycle Technology Source Book

This book focuses on the storage of the staple commodities such as grains and root crops, but it also covers other major food groups such as oils, fish, fruit and vegetables. Useful reading for volunteers training for food processing projects, their trainers, and non-specialists already involved in projects and seeking specific information on technology choice.

INTRODUCTION ix

1 The importance of storage 1

2 Principles of storage 2

Temperature 2

Moisture 3

Keeping pests out of the store 3

Control of pests in stores 5

Storage characteristics of selected food commodities 6

3 Traditional storage methods 9

Earthenware pots and gourds 9

Leaves 10

Bark 10

Baskets 11

Sacks 12

Basket silos 13

Roof storage 14

Maize cribs 15

Underground pits 16

Clamp storage 16

Small storehouses 17

Earth silos 18

4 Improved storage techniques 19

Plastic bags 19

45-gallon metal drums 20

The Pusa bin 20

Metal silos 21

Brick and ferro-cement silos 22

Storage in ventilated huts 23

Improved pit storage 24

5 Socio-economic context 25

Appraisal 25

Technology choice 26

Economic considerations 27

Social and cultural considerations 28

Monitoring and evaluation 29

viii STORAGE

6 Case studies 30

Improvements to traditional grain stores in Zambia 30

Flexible solar heat disinfestation devices for domestic and rural storage

of cereals in the tropics 31

REFERENCES 32

CONTACTS 34