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The elation that wells up when village farmers have a bumper harvest
may be short-lived if rural markets are flooded with grain and prices
dive. Because Africa has undeveloped markets, food stocks cannot be quickly
hauled from local markets to population centres or other food deficit
areas. Part of the answer is better farm storage, which allows farmers
to withhold grain until markets recover from depressed post-harvest prices.
Through SG 2000 programmes, thousands of extension workers have learned
how to construct inexpensive but durable storage bins that ward off attacks
by insects and rodents. Using locally available materials, participating
farmers have built thousands of 1- to 2-tonne grain bins and silos. These
improved structures serve as demonstration points for disseminating the
principles to other farmers.
Secure storage structures in combination with improved ways of handling
harvested grain such as careful drying, shelling
of maize, and chemical treatment against storage insects can sharply
reduce losses, which in traditional storage may amount to 20 to 40 percent
of the grain. Better storage gives farm families greater nutritional
security, enables them to save more of their crops to consume or market,
and lessens the pressure to sell when prices are low.
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