Hifadhi Nafaka Salama (Save Safe Food), Tanzania

Tanzania is among the top producers of maize in Sub-Saharan Africa. However, about 15% to 40% is lost at all stages from harvest to market. The challenge which the project sought to address was that most farmers rely on traditional post-harvest practices (PHP) or on polypropylene bags for storage, neither of which protect grains sufficiently from storage damages and losses.

The project has been successful in building a market for Post-harvest Technologies in the targeted regions of Tanzania. There are good perspectives for sustainability and further scaling in the regions where the project has intervened. Awareness and capacity have been created amongst farmers and bags are sold in large numbers. Other suppliers of hermetic bags are crowding in, and the local government authorities have started allocating resources to promote good Post-Harvest Management practices.

The project focused on promoting the use of tarpaulins and hermetic bags for improved post-harvest management and safer storage among farmers. It successfully trained 8,404 farmers, surpassing its goal of 5,850 farmers, and the commercial partners generated sales exceeding the target of TZS 3.7 billion in PHT product sales. The initiative created 336 part-time jobs, significantly above the target, demonstrating a strong market build-up for postharvest technology in the targeted regions.

The project’s impact extended beyond the directly trained farmers, with 56,634 households beginning to use hermetic bags, substantially exceeding initial targets. Farmers reported an average of 6 kg less grain loss per bag compared to traditional storage, alongside higher market prices and health benefits from avoiding chemical storage solutions. The project’s success lies in mobilising a wide array of stakeholders, significantly enhancing economic productivity, and contributing to sustainable development goals by introducing innovative storage solutions and practices.