GCCF Scientific Advisory Council Member Travels to Egypt for Cold Chain Project

GCCF Scientific Advisory Council member Dr. Elhadi Yahia visited Egypt to train producers on postharvest best practices for mangoes. This was the third training Dr. Elhadi has delivered for the Egypt Rural Agribusiness Strengthening (ERAS) Project which has enabled him to see some of the uptake in best practices. Visits were made to nine villages in Upper Egypt. Following the training sessions and recommendations delivered last year, the great efforts made by the team, including those in the field, are very noticeable among all the stakeholders of the sector, but are exceptionally noticeable among the traders. This has not been accomplished before and is certainly seen now as a great achievement resulting in increased value addition benefits to small farmers and improved access to markets.

Several excellent advances have already been achieved compared to last year, where several farmers and traders, especially in the Aswan Governorate, have adopted some of the recommendations to improve the handling practices of the fruit. For example, less farmers are selling their fruit on the trees (known locally as calala), and are picking and marketing their own fruit, thus gaining value added benefits. Some farmers are using more adequate tools for harvesting including hooks with nets, ladders, and scissors; washing their fruits; and replacing the use of cement papers with adequate and safe papers. More farmers, intermediaries, and traders are using plastic crates instead of the traditional wood crates. Efforts have been invested to connect farmers to the market through lead traders, especially in Elobour wholesale market in Cairo, the most important wholesale market in the country. These are certainly very noticeable achievements of the postharvest and cold chain teams which are improving the handling of the fruit, significantly maintaining quality, reducing losses and waste, and achieving benefits to small farmers and other stakeholders of the sector.