Methods of storage of grains by farmers and losses during storage.

摘要

Storage of grains is an important post harvest function which involves holding and preserving of agricultural commodities from the time they are harvested until they are needed for consumption. Agricultural products need to be stored from one harvest to next and sometimes beyond that for various reasons. The farmers store their produce for own consumption, for sale at some later date or for seed purposes. Different methods have been adopted by farmers for storage of grains. The study was conducted in Dharwad and Haveri districts of Karnataka with an objective of documenting different storage methods adopted by farmers. Various types of storage methods used at farm level by farmers were identified and the grain loss during storage was documented. Among various methods of storage, Pucca koti and metal bins are improved storage methods used by farmers. Gunny bags, gunny bags lined with polythene sheet and fertilizer bags are common types of storage methods adopted by farmers. Highest loss of grains was observed in case of underground storage (20.9%), while in case of Pucca koti (6.34%), gunny bags (4.42%) and metal bins (3.05%).