Good Agrucultural Practices for Trainers and Processors

Abstract

Fruits and vegetables are important crops in Eastern and Central Africa, just as they are the world over. They are a source of essential vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, fibres and carbohydrates which our bodies crucially need. These nutrients improve the quality the human diet and protect us from chronic diseases. Fruits and vegetables, however, are highly perishable leading to drastic nutritional and economic losses. Estimated post harvest losses for fruits and vegetable in developing countries is 40%. This means that during the off-season, households face shortage of fruits and vegetables due to lack of knowledge on how to preserve and process them for year-round consumption. The long term implication is that supplies of locally processed products are inadequate and do not meet the required quality standards for domestic and international markets. These challenges have spurred ASARECA to invest in research and development on fresh produce technology to add onto their value and increase incomes. In response to this particular challenge, ASARECA initiated a project; “Processing for commercial exploitation of selected tree-fruits and vegetables in Tanzania and Rwanda” to validate the existing protocols for processing dried products and fruit juices on commercial but small scale basis.