Case study
Case studies on managing quality, assuring safety and reducing post-harvest losses in fruit and vegetable supply chains in South Asian countries
This studies report aims at contributing to achieve SO4. Particularly, it serves to produce and share information and results in order to deliver under Output 2.2 of SO4, notably “Evidence-based food loss and waste reduction programs are developed at national, regional and global levels”.
Fresh fruits and vegetables contribute significantly to food and nutrition security, poverty reduction and to economic development in the countries belonging to the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). Smallholders who make little use of post-harvest (PH) technologies produce most of the fresh fruits and vegetables supplied to mass markets in the Region. The high qualitative and quantitative PH losses sustained in these traditional fruit and vegetable supply chains negatively impact all stakeholders in the supply chain, with farmers and retailers being the most affected. To address these issues, technical innovations and good practices were introduced through pilot demonstrations and training in six fresh produce supply chains in three South Asian countries: The People’s Republic of Bangladesh, The Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal and The Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. The findings documented in this publication provide an evidence base for the cost-effective management of the quality of fresh produce and the reduction of quantitative loss in fresh horticultural supply chains in SAARC countries.