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