Our East African Ag missionary team has successfully introduced the grain storage bags from Purdue University (Purdue Insect Conttol Sacks) in Kenya and Malawi. Farmers there have been able to store grain (mostly maize, sorghum and millet)without insect infestation for future use.
Our team is planning to work in Sierra Leone in February and has found out that there is no PIC sack distributor there. We realize that rice is the predominant crop there.
I am asking for input from all of you:
Has anyone used PIC sacks (or a similar product) successfully for rice storage?
Does anyone know if anyone, or any agency, is interested in becoming a distributor in Sierra Leone?
Is there a reason these sacks are not used there?
Thanks for your help!
Gwen
We are a group supported by the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod and based in the United States
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I live in Lao with a farming family. There are losses to insects when corn is stored. They store unhusked rice in woven plastic bags and my Lao wife reports that there are no losses of rice to insects unless rice is stored for several years. No bags might mean that they do not see a problem. We do have losses to mice.
Gwen,
Do you need an agricultural contact in Freetown? I have a Dr. Sylvester Rogers there that has worked in - or with - the Ministry of Agriculture.
Jon Cassel - jon.cassel@worldteam.org
Thank you for your response! That is very helpful information!
Hello, I am Elijah Mlangali from Malawi. PIC sacks was introduced and most farmers are aware of it. I have been using it to store beans, maize and ground nuts without any problems. They worked well for me. But there is a challenge that most rural farmers who are also prone to post harvest losses cannot afford to buy due to high prices and availability in their local markets.
I’ve recently started a post harvest loss pilot project in a remote village in Angola. There is no PIC or any similar distributor in the country. Have discovered that the hermetic multi layer plastic bags (typically within a jute outer bag) used to ship dry coffee beans to your local coffee roaster are the same bags! Google GrainPro. I’ve been given hundreds of these bags by three local roasters. Typically roasters recycle them or they go in the dumpster. If they are damaged or compromised in some way they can be restored with the use of the plastic patching tape used to patch holes in greenhouse type hoop houses, easily ordered on Amazon. I use a heavy duty REUSABLE zip tie to tie the bags shut. Also found on Amazon. And use DuraSack Heavy duty Contractor Bags, also found on Amazon. To assure that the grain has been properly dried you might want to check ourt the DryCard. This is a very simple and inexpensive way to measure moisture content in grain prior to storage developed by engineers at University of California Davis. more than happy to answer questions and given further information at richardapope@yahoo.com
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Thanks so much!! This is very helpful!