Postharvest technologies for fruits and vegetables in South Asian countries: a review

Agricultural systems in South Asian countries are dominated by smallholder farmers. Additionally, these farmers have limited access to pre- and post-harvest technologies due to their high initial cost. The lack of these technologies in postharvest handling is responsible for 20% to 44% of fruit and vegetable losses. These high losses are largely the result of a generally weak basic postharvest infrastructure for the preservation of products, which avoids damage from improper handling, transportation, packaging, and storage. High postharvest losses of products negatively affect food availability, food security, and nutrition, as the producer is able to sell less of the farm yield and the net availability of these food commodities for consumption is reduced. An underlying cause of these postharvest losses is the limited awareness and knowledge bases of stakeholders (researchers, farmers, governments, non-governmental organizations, and merchants) in the traditional supply chains in which these losses occur. The analysis presented in this paper explores the state of postharvest practice in South Asian countries and discusses options for low-cost postharvest technologies in the region that can support small-scale farmers and provide a viable pathway for supply to the market, joining with modern value chains and bringing about individual and regional reduction in postharvest losses of fruits and vegetables. The improvement of basic and simple low-cost technologies through precise research efforts has the potential to prevent such huge losses of products, and help meet the ever-increasing demand for food in South Asian countries.