CROP PROCESSING

AGRICULTURAL PROCESSING FOR VALUE ADDITION STRATEGY

As development partners, we should all considering the challenges of the increase in human population, low yield due to pest and disease attacks on cultivated crops, and poor level of mechanized agricultural activities. These factors contributing much to food insecurity despite many efforts are kept increasing production and productivity of agricultural products. Then product processing and storage are the other things that we need to meet as crucial importance things for tackling increasing hunger and food insecurity cases.

In this effort, STAWI work to empower smallholder farmers through building capacity and provision of technical expertise to help them understand and improving their crop management practices regarding the processing and storing of their harvested food crops. This effort is made to make SHF’s understand the importance of crops processing as it results in making agricultural products more durable from assured preservation methods, converted into edible products, an extension of availability and accessibility, provide variety and choice depend on someone needs, products become attractive and add more value to it. This effort goes in line with global food insecurity mitigation.

In fighting global food cries, Agricultural product processing and storage plays an important role in food and feed preservation for the continual survival of man. Through the development of modern storage facilities, food crop preservation becomes easy and simple to follow as

 

AGRICULTURAL PRODUCT

In Agriculture, product refers to processed agricultural produce which has been turned into finish goods either for human/animal consumption or for industrial uses.

 

PROCESSING

Processing in agriculture involves the biological, physical, mechanical, and biochemical manipulation of agricultural produce in order to preserve it for further use. It involves the series of operations taken to change agricultural products into consumer-finish products.  It should be noted that agricultural processing involves both scientific and traditional manipulation of agricultural produce so as to make the products to be more useful and be able to be stored for future uses.

PROCESSING TECHNIQUES

These are some of the different processing techniques involved in processing agricultural produce. Here, different machines are used in the processing e.g milling techniques (hammer mill, roller mill, and bore mill), extraction techniques (Oil extraction), flying, etc.

 1. The hammer mill

This is a machine used in processing agricultural products that are dry. The hammer mill is made of the hammer with a roller with pulleys. The blocks contain harmers. As the hammer rotates, the block will rotate as well, then the product will be milled by the pressure of the hammer. It is used to mill crops whose moisture content is reduced e.g rice.

2. Bore mill

It has two plates; rough and smooth plates, enclosed inside the structure, in the hopper example is the melon grinder. The surface is enclosed in a structure. The auger pushes the product into the collection point. It is used to processed agriculture materials that are wet, oily, and dry.

 3. Roller mill

Consists of two rollers that are cylindrical in shape, connected to a pulley or sheath in-between the rollers. There is space in between the two-cylinder so that when they rotate they will rotate in two directions and merge the produce into small particles.

WHY DO WE PROCESS OUR FOOD CROPS

1. Processing helps to make food available even during the off-season.
2. When food is processed it taste and look very attractive
3. Processing helps in the durability of food crop products- when a food crop is been processed like in dehydration of a food crop, micro-organisms become absent thereby preventing spoilage.
4. Processing adds value to the agricultural produce.
5. Processing helps in producing income for individual and foreign exchange to a country
6. It creates room for commercial agriculture, thereby promoting agricultural activities.
7. If we stand to process our food crop regularly, then more food will be in our food reserve which is an aid in adaptation and mitigation of climate change.
8. Processing provides raw materials for further studies and for industrial uses.
9. Through processing, some materials are produced (by-products) which can be used for the formulation of animal feed.
10. The science of processing can aids in drugs and medicinal purposes
11. Agriculture produce processing gives Income to a farmer and improves his standard of living
12. When a country process her food crops then exportation will be high, thereby improving her foreign exchange earning
13. Processing provides employment for individuals and the masses
14. Through agriculture processing of crops like sugarcane bio-fuel and power is produced which is used for generation of farm or industrial power.
15. If a processing factory is sited in a rural area, it creates the development of that rural area.

STAWI facilitate the knowledge development regarding understanding the principle that, agricultural produce and by-products is an essential demand and means of survival for the world’s agro-based industries, as it plays a greater role in almost all aspect of life. Unprocessed raw materials are raw materials for the intermediate industries with processed food/consumables as the finished product. Energy use in agriculture and food processing is high; hence, mechanization is essential to reduce the level of drudgery especially in the local processing factories and mills.

WHAT STAWI SPECIFICALLY DO UNDER THIS AGRICULTURE SEGMENT

 

1. The organization promotes sustainable agricultural management for economic development by fostering sustainable post-harvest management practices.
2. It seeks to support local food processing, in-other to improve local knowledge on agricultural mechanization.
3. The organization aids food security strategies, as it considers that food wastage and spoilage can be cut down through processing.
4. Based on the amount of food produced yearly, STAWI fosters adaptation of processing and storage interventions by smallholder farmers through aiding conservation and re-organization of most strategic agriculture crops produced by SHFs as well as contributing to the development and promotion of agricultural activities.
5. Since climate change is one of the greatest challenges on food crop production, STAWI fosters the processing of agriculture products by creating new ways in which our food crops can be properly managed.
6. STAWI helps to enlighten or widen SHF’s scope on the knowledge of agricultural product management, giving possible recommendations and practical advice to farmers and agricultural machine operators.
7. STAWI gives out an ideal practical way inside of different means of crops processing and preservation and the advantages and disadvantages of processing mechanisms as applied in real life.