Harvest and Storage of Quinoa

Harvesting and Storage of a specific crop is a critical step in the production of crops as it has an effect on the yield and its quality. Proper harvesting and storage methods can contribute significantly to the overall productivity of the crop and therefore appropriate methods for the specific crop should be used.

The Quinoa plants are harvested when the reach physiological maturity and are laid out for 30 to 45 days to dry. Afterwards they are threshed, beaten with curved sticks and tramped by animals. Traditionally, the plants are unrooted by hands and dried on stacks or heaps and afterwards threshed manually. However experience has shown that the un- rooting of the plants is leading to contamination of grains by small stones and sand that are attached to the roots. In the 1996 to 1997 however, mechanical cutting has been introduced with the use of harvester. The crops can than either be harvested by a combine harvester or stationary harvester. The achieved yield are up to 5000 kg per hectare of grain and the by- products of the harvest is 5 – 10 tonnes, which is used for feeding livestock. (FAO, n.d )

Figure 1: Traditional Quinoa threshing in Bolivia 

Unfortunately Bolivian Quinoa farmers had to face losses due to attributable management deficiencies, particularly associated with harvest and post- harvest losses. The process of harvesting the crops and the post- harvest stage are critical stages which are contributing to the overall quality of the quinoa grain. In general, the management from cutting to final processing is costly and the control over these processes is rather limited. Therefore it is often the case that, especially in traditional farming systems, impurities can be found in the final product, which directly influences the market price. The technique of cutting instead of un- rooting the crops has shown that it reduces the probability of incorporation of impurities and small stones in the grain. In addition, the use of an arches system for drying the plants is offering a relative degree of protection against attacks by rodents.  The process of threshing has also been tried to improve by using mechanical threshers which makes the threshing process easier and reduces the percentage of un- threshed grains. All these approaches do have a positive effect on the seed quality, the overall productivity of the farm and the market price. However the costs of machinery is high and not all farmers are be able to make use of these products if they don´t receive any financial support. (Wilfredo Rojas, 2004 )

However the use of machinery is not the only solution to reduce harvest and storage losses. Looking at this issue from a more ecological approach, it can be said that the overall yield can be improved by better preparation of the soil and the application of enough nitrogen during sowing and earthing up. Proper soil management and the maintenance of adequate organic matter within the soil will affect the farms productivity and at the same time promotes biological diversity on the farm. In case the farmers are not able to make use of the machineries which are reducing post- harvest losses, proper training for the farmers can be offered, where participants are educated about proper handling of crops and the prevention of contamination.

References

FAO. (n.d ). Cultivation Practices . Date accessed: January 2017 from  Quinoa (Chenopodium quince): http://www.fao.org/docrep/t0646e/t0646e0f.htm

Wilfredo Rojas, J. L. (2004 ). Organic Production . Date accessed: December 2016 from Study on the social, environmental and economic impacts of Quinoa promotion in Bolivia : http://www.underutilized-species.org/Documents/PUBLICATIONS/quinoa_case_study_en.pdf