Farmers across the country are bracing themselves for reduced yields and dwindling incomes following unusually heavy rains that have upset postharvest activities.
January and February were previously characterised by mildly dry spells or little rains but due to climate change, the country is now facing heavy rainfall.
Farmers who spoke to The New Times said the disruption in postharvest handling is causing aflatoxin in grains and will lead to low prices for their produce as well as possible rejection by buyers.
Aflatoxin is produced by certain moulds found in food, which can cause liver damage and cancer.
"When the harvest is contaminated with aflatoxin, it attracts lower prices or can be totally rejected by buyers,” said Jean Nepomuscene Nsabimana, the President of Cooperative Twitezimbere from Musha sector in Rwamagana district.
The cooperative, which groups together 116 farmers, is anticipating its maize yield to drop to below 40 tonnes this season, down from 50 tonnes due to delayed harvesting.
Part of their maize plantation was also hit by prolonged drought, Nepomuscene said, adding the unusual rains are worsening the situation.
According to data from the Ministry in charge of Emergency Management, from January to February 19 at least 484 hectares of crops were eroded by disasters which are, at the same time, affecting post-harvest activities.
"We were not expecting this kind of rain because we used to face a short dry season in the same period that enables farmers to harvest and dry their produce,” Nepomuscene said, "It is now difficult to harvest in rains because the crops are still wet.”
Farmers appeal for drying shelters
Nsabimana said their cooperative has only one hangar to dry and store maize harvest, which is too small to store the whole harvest.
This, he said, means the remaining harvest is not properly handled as it is stored in an inappropriate way in farmers’ homes.
"Even the harvest in hanger doesn’t stay in better condition because prolonged rains also prevent grains from drying on time. The harvest can reach up to April while still in wet condition and without buyers,” Nsanzimana said, adding they are in need of building more hangars as drying facilities close to the farmlands.
"The low agricultural output is looming and farmers could need any other support to be able to get seeds and fertilizers on loans to be able to continue planting in another season,” he witnessed.
Evariste Tugirinshuti is a maize farmer in Kirehe district, who is also the president of 31, 271 Maize Farmers’ Cooperatives Federation in Eastern and Southern provinces.
He told The New Times that lack of enough hangers close to farmers’ arable lands hurts undermines their efforts to boost incomes.
"Because hangars are few, many farmlands are far from where they are located. For instance, one sector in Kigarama where I grow maize has only six standard hangars. Therefore, we are grappling with postharvest concerns. It is difficult to harvest without enough hangars. Some are waiting for sunny days to be able to harvest but it also delays planting for the next season which has already started,” he said.
He reiterated that when the product contaminates Aflatoxin, it is rejected by buyers or attracts poor prices.
Africa Improved Foods rejected 90 per cent of the maize it was supplied with during the 2017 Agricultural Season B because the quantities were contaminated with Aflatoxin.
Senate to look into farmers’ post-harvest handling dissatisfaction
On February 10, this year, the Senate resolved to make an in-depth analysis of issues in drying and storage facilities initiatives with an aim to ensure proper handling of and value addition to agricultural produce.
Meanwhile, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources’ 2020/2021 report, Rwanda counts 1,453 drying infrastructures and 518 storage with a total capacity of 44,165 tonnes and 296,770 tonnes respectively.
In addition, the report showed that 10 mobile dryers and six Cob drying machines were purchased to contribute to reducing grain losses and reduce post-harvest losses and limit exposure of the harvest to aflatoxin.
The mobile grain dryers use electricity and can be connected to tractors in order to use their power to run their diesel-powered burner where there is no electricity supply system.
Postharvest losses in Rwanda account for 16-22 per cent for cereals losses and 11 per cent for beans. The country targets to reduce the loss to 5 per cent by 2024.