FOR LILO FRUITS, QUALITY PRESERVATION A REALITY THROUGH HERMETIC BAGS

LILO Fruits is not your typical fruit trading company. Based in Costa Rica, owners Kris Carvajal and Junior Quesada are passionate about employing innovative and improved ways to protect the quality of their organically-grown products. Their obsession gained the trust and confidence of their customers, both locally and abroad. One of the ways they safely preserve their coffee and turmeric, is by packing them in GrainPro® SuperGrainbags® (SGB) -- an Ultra Hermetic™ liner with super low permeability to air and moisture.

The company grows organically different types of foodcrops at their Finca Lilo de Biolley, situated inside the largest rainforest park in Central America. The beautiful and lush location is perfect for growing various food crops that include various fruits-bearing trees such as lime, graviola, rambutan, banana, and coffee, and spices such as black pepper and their prized turmeric.

“LILO Fruits strives to inspire our buyers and our communities to lead an active, healthy lifestyle by offering simple and convenient options that are always fresh, safe and healthy,” explains Jennifer Long, a partner and spokesperson. Their commitment to their customers, farmers and the communities they belong to motivates them to utilize bio-intensive, bio-dynamic and permaculture techniques to ensure that they have the best, healthiest, cleanest, and the freshest offerings.

However, protecting their organically-grown commodities against insects and fungal growth is a major cause of concern. This is when LILO Fruits began using SGBs.

Other similar companies would’ve resorted to chemical fumigation. A common problem among companies that promote organically-grown commodities is that they employ inorganic measures along their production processes. Chemicals tend to kill adult insects, but leave eggs to develop and do damage later. Additionally, chemical residues are left on the commodities, which are eventually ingested by consumers. These are some of the reasons why international regulations are implementing tighter policies on the use of chemical fumigants on food crops.

The SuperGrainbag is just one of many Ultra Hermetic solutions developed by GrainPro. It’s an affordable liner bag designed to protect dried agricultural commodities against infestation and mold growth, while preserving freshness and aromatic qualities for more than a year. What’s more is that using the SGB can kill all insects, including their eggs, without chemical fumigation.

“We’ve had positive results from using the GrainPro bags (SGB) in shipping roasted coffee and powdered turmeric,” says Long. She described that they store the commodities in double layered SGBs for added protection. “I am happy that the bags organically control insects without any chemical residues. GrainPro truly pleases us!”

The combination of the quality of their products’ and their handling make them stand out in the market. They have big plans ahead, too. Organic medicinal food products made of raw materials grown from the region are already in the works.

It’s all about quality. Through Ultra Hermetic storage, LILO Fruits has a sustainable way to safely preserve quality without putting in chemicals that could harm those they serve their products to. The future is looking bright for LILO Fruits.

SuperGrainbag®: Strengthening the Value Chain of Rice in India

Maharashtra Agricultural Competitiveness Project (MACP), with a mandate to strengthen its implementation arm, the Agricultural Technology Management Agency (ATMA) in the state of Maharashtra, took the initiative to ensure that its objectives of increasing productivity, profitability and market access of farming community is being effectively implemented by ATMA.

As part of its efforts to help raise the local agricultural commodity, the MACP organized a day-long conference on post harvest technologies and handed out GrainPro SuperGrainbags (SGBs), which is seen as an immediate storage solution.

they lose up to 20% of their yields due to pests and rodents that eat and contaminate their grains

416 SGBs with a capacity of 50 kilos each were handed out to smallholder farmers who took part in demonstrations in the region to store paddy and other grain yields. High yielding rice seed varieties and nutrients were also handed out as part of the program.

Hanumant Kisan Ghadage and his wife Maya, progressive farmers from Maushi village in Patan Taluka, took 10 bags for storage of paddy and other grains. Before using the SGBs, they reported that they lose up to 20% of their yields due to pests and rodents that eat and contaminate their grains.

After attending the Ultra Hermetic training provided by Pest Control of India (PCI) and GrainPro, he believes that storing his surplus produce in the SGBs will safely preserve the quality and reduce potential losses.

For more about GrainPro, please visit our official website at www.grainpro.com, or check us out on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube. Please use the hashtag #storingthefuture to discuss Ultra Hermetic™ solutions in social media.

COCOONS AS AN ALTERNATIVE TO COLD STORES IN PEANUT STORAGE

A recently concluded trial in Indonesia comparing  GrainPro® Gas-Hermetic Fumigation (G-HF) Cocoon™ to cold storage and ordinary warehouse storage to preserve peanuts came back in March with positive results. The client, a highly-regarded name in the peanut processing industry, concluded that the Cocoons performed extremely well in preserving the freshness of peanuts.

Cutting out the need for refrigeration, the company will reduce its carbon footprint as well and eventually will market a better product. 

According to their report, the cold store and the Cocoon performed similarly in controlling aflatoxin levels, moisture content percentage, and oxidation values even after seven months. Visually, the peanuts stored in the Cocoon did not show any signs of discoloration. The most important consideration during the trial was to see how the Cocoon would deal with infestation. Based on the findings, the Cocoon eliminated both insect adults and eggs due to the rapid drop in oxygen levels in the first 220 days of installation.

The impressive results and the economic benefits of using Cocoons convinced the company executives to use modified atmosphere technology to complement their existing cold storage facilities. After a visit by Alnor Limbo, GrainPro Customer Support Engineer, the company is looking to install five more 100 tonne G-HF Cocoons at their facility while using mechanized loaders.

The GrainPro G-HF Cocoon is an Ultra Hermetic™ storage solution for large quantities of bagged commodities. With sizes ranging from 5MT to 1050MT, the Cocoon can control insect and fungal contamination through superior gas and water barriers that prevent the exchange of air and moisture during storage. With a gas flushing mechanism, it can be easily filled with carbon dioxide to speed up the process of  insect elimination.

 

There have been several global inquiries in the viability of modified atmosphere in Cocoons as a storage and pest-control solution for peanuts. This latest experience in Indonesia clearly shows that there are economic benefits in its use as an organic storage. Tom de Bruin, CEO of GrainPro Philippines adds, "by cutting out the need for refrigeration, the company will reduce its carbon footprint as well and eventually will market a better product."

GrainPro Distributor Leads the Way in Safe Storage in Ghana

 In 2010, Nana Yaw Obeng immediately saw the potential of hermetic technology to safely store grains and seeds. His vision is paving the way to safer postharvest storage and organic preservation, not only in Ghana, but throughout the continent.

A Postharvest Technology graduate of the Natural Resource Institute in the United Kingdom, Nana returned to Ghana upon completion of his degree and worked for the government. He started Agrimat, Ltd., as a trader of agricultural inputs and machineries. It is through his business that he found out about the GrainPro® SuperGrainbag®, a hermetic liner bag with superior air and water barriers to stop infestation and inhibit fungal growth without using chemicals. 

Harvest season is a busy time for the Agrimat team when farmers flock to buy these miraculous storage bags. Each farmer buys up to 10 to 15 bags at 8 Cedis, or less than US$2 per bag. Ivy Oduro Donkyi holds Agrimat’s wholesale warehouse, where GrainPro bags are sold to retailers from all over the countryside. Ivy is on her 14th year with Agrimat and she confirms, “our clients are happy with the performance of the SuperGrainbag and they keep coming back.” At the store, we find Dora Bempong who’s been an employee for 20 years with Sophia Turkson, another 14-year employee. Dora says, “I also use the SGB at my house to store rice and since I began using it, I’ve never had any infestation problems.”

The liner bag isn’t the only hermetic solution Agrimat is offering. Tom de Bruin, who visited Agrimat last month, explains that, "as the oldest and most senior partner of GrainPro in Africa, Agrimat also sells Cocoons™, which can hermetically store up to 1050 metric tons." They are piloting a new government initiative to set up grain warehousing facilities that will help smallholder farmers safely store their crops without the use of chemicals. This puts them and hermetic storage at the forefront of food loss reduction. 

COCOON USE SPREADS IN ASEAN REGION

The use of Cocoons are spreading throughout Indonesia, the Philippines, and the rest of the ASEAN region. Check out these pictures from Alnor Limbo, GP Customer Support Engineer, which shows installations of Cocoons in the region.

According to Limbo, "Cocoons are non-chemical storage solutions that are designed to effectively control insect infestation on dry agricultural commodities." With the reliance of most food producers in chemical fumigants, Cocoons offer a more sustainable and cleaner solution to storing a wide range of grains and seeds.

The GrainPro Cocoon employs the principles of Ultra Hermetic storage, modified atmospheres and organic pest control. The combination is a gas- and watertight container that prevents the exchange of air and moisture. This results in the complete elimination of insects (in all life stages) embedded with the stored crops, the inhibition of aflatoxin-producing moulds, and the preservation of the crops for longer than its regular shelf life without any chemical residues.

Hermetic storage solutions, such as the Cocoon, is leading a global revolution in how food is preserved. Tighter international laws and trade agreements are calling for the reduction and complete ban of several chemical fumigants and pest-control systems. This makes the use of organic storage and pest-control systems very appealing for food producers and traders.

BABBAN GONA AMONG RECEPIENTS OF 2017 SKOLL AWARDS

Kola Masha, Managing Director of the Babban Gona program in Nigeria, is among this year’s recipients of the prestigious Skoll Awards for Social Entrepreneurship. Masha, a supporter of hermetic storage and social enterprise, was recognized for his role in creating a model that attracts smallholder farmers and the nation’s unemployed youths. This agricultural program is generating employment opportunities, livelihoods, and is keeping younger generations from joining extremist groups and gangs in the country.

Babban Gona provides much needed support through financing, training, tools, technology, and marketing to increase the yields and profits of farmers by 2.3 times the national average. The member farmers bring their harvests to Babban Gona collection centers for processing and storage. The crops are stored inside GrainPro® Cocoons™ to safely preserve the quality and freshness of the products for extended periods without the use of harmful chemicals. The crops are then sold by Babban Gona during the lean season to trusted customers who pay a premium for quality. 

This results in higher profits for the farmers. But more than that, the program is creating opportunities and making agriculture a viable livelihood for the millions of youths who are without employment prospects in a country that has one of the worst unemployment rates in the continent.

The Skoll Awards distinguish transformative leaders whose organizations disrupt the status quo, drive sustainable large-scale change, and are poised to create even greater impact on the world. Awardees’ organizations receive $1.25 million core support investments to scale their work and increase their impact. The social entrepreneurs also gain leverage through their long-term participation in a global community of visionary leaders and innovators dedicated to solving some of the biggest global challenges of our time.

PRESS RELEASE: Africa Strategic Grain Reserves Conference

Nairobi, Kenya – Some of the brightest minds in food security are coming together on 14-15 June 2016 to participate at the first Africa Strategic Grain Reserve Conference to be held in Nairobi at the Intercontinental Hotel. The event aims to break the cycle of hunger and poverty in developing nations by reinforcing the role of strategic grain reserves through innovative and affordable safe storage systems and solutions.

The 2016 first Africa Strategic Grain Reserve Conference is an opportunity to discuss large-scale storage and national grain reserves from the perspective of users, experts, and policy makers in the field, and introduce innovative storage strategies and solutions to strengthen Africa’s food security and food safety. The prevalence and growth of aflatoxin in stored grain continues to be a leading food safety issue on the continent.

Conference Sponsors include the Africa Union’s Partnership for Aflatoxin Control (PACA), Abt Associates, the Schooner Africa Fund, AGCO/GSI and GrainPro.

Partners include the Kenyan Ministry of Agriculture, the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), Farm Concern International, Purdue Improved Crop Storage (PICS), and the World Food Preservation Center.

For more information, contact Jordan Dey (Jordandey@grainpro.com) or conference organizer Ludovica Bellingeri (lbellingeri@gmail.com)

(Victor Dela Casa)

A press release that I made for the Food and Agriculture Organization.

SUBSIDIZED HERMETIC BAGS LAUNCH IN KENYA’S BUSIA COUNTY

Farmers in Kenya’s Busia County could now avail of hermetic bags at a low, subsidized rate thanks to the partnership between the Agriculture Ministry, the US Agency for International Development (USAID), Kenya Agricultural Livestock and Research Organization, and the six storage firms that are spearheading the hermetic storage revolution in Africa. 

The Busia County government is urging farmers to buy and use affordable and efficient hermetic storage bags to protect against weevil infestation. Some one million bags are stocked across the county at a subsidized price of Sh200 (compared to the Sh300 retail price). One of these hermetic solutions is the GrainPro SuperGrainbag® Farm (SGB Farm). The SGB Farm is an Ultra Hermetic™ bag liner with extremely low permeability to air and moisture to stop infestation and inhibit the growth of aflatoxin-producing molds. It is designed to safely preserve the quality of grains and seeds for more than a year. 

According to Samson Khachina, County Director of Agriculture,” farmers require bags that are tightly sealed to store their maize.” In Kenya, the weevil infestation occurs because many farmers harvest their maize crops late in the season when it is already too dry to reduce their costs. “It is better for the farmers to take put in the effort to dry their maize to between 13 to 14 percent moisture content,” Khachina said. If done correctly, farmers can use hermetic bags to keep out weevils and kill off any that are still embedded with the stored maize without using harmful chemicals.

USAID has partnered with local governments and agricultural stakeholders to popularize the bags in all the 47 counties. Kenya is taking on a leadership role in food security in Africa. Major topical events, such as the Africa Strategic Grain Reserve Conference, were held in Nairobi last year. The country is also looking to include hermetic storage solutions into its subsidized pricing program. With the threat of food insecurity always a looming issue in the continent, Kenya’s pivotal role cannot be understated.

Project Origin: A VIDEO Recap of the “Best Of” Awards and Auctions

The Project Origin - Best of El Salvador pilot was held last May 2 to 8, 2016. It was a huge success that resulted in increased profits – up to 480% for some farmers – and creation of stronger relationships between local producers and roasters around the world. To preserve the quality of auctioned off varieties, GrainPro® SuperGrainbags® were used (see video).

Project Origin travels to coffee producing countries where they meet local with producers to find the best coffees, which they enter into competitions and auctions. The program, still in its early stages, is already help coffee farmers increase their incomes.

For example, Ever Leonel Díaz Pérez, the 2016 El Salvador Washed Champion. Pérez produces only 6 to 15 bags a year, which prevented him from entering cupping competitions. He would sell his coffee for around $2 a pound to other producers. This year, it was a different story. He came up with the best coffee, which he sold for $9.60 a pound.

Rural Distribution Plays an Important Role in the Safe Preservation of Grains and Seeds in Ethiopia

“This is the first year I’m not buying chemicals to store my grain,” Baraka Nurie, the mother of three small children, revealed to Jordan Dey, GrainPro® VP for Food Security, during a visit on February in Ethiopia’s Gurage Region.

What gives? A new rural distribution strategy initiated in January 2017 by GrainPro’s Ethiopia distributor, HiTec, will give millions of small farmers access to pesticide-free and safe hermetic storage. Hermetic bags, such as GrainPro’s SuperGrainbag®, help stop infestation and inhibit the growth of aflatoxin-producing molds, while retaining the quality, color, and taste of stored grains for months, even years without using chemicals that can harm consumers.

HiTec’s strategy involves partnering with governments and local groups to conduct outreach activities that will see highly-trained agricultural extension officers visiting rural communities to train and educate farmers on hermetic storage, and establish a network of local dealers to supply the farmers.

Farmers in Ethiopia traditionally grow corn, sorghum and teff for their household consumption, keeping four or five bags (100KG) of the grain in their house.  Bugs, particularly weevils, immediately show up, infesting the grain, eating the nutritious core and reducing the contents to a powdery mess.

To combat this problem, farmers, desperate due to the lack of appropriate, affordable and alternative preservation methods during storage, are directly applying chemicals categorized under the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants on their grains every couple of months. Some of these chemicals have doubtful origins and are banned internationally from use without proper training because their use can have negative health and environmental effects. 

These chemicals kill the weevils, but leave residues that threaten the health of consumers, particularly children, and farm animals. At a financial standpoint, chemical pesticides reduce the market value of their crops. Additionally, the improper use of these chemicals can lead to environmental problems and health concerns for users and their families. Given the downsides of using chemicals, hermetic storage is clearly the safer and more cost-efficient alternative.

HiTec’s strategy involves partnering with governments and local groups to conduct outreach activities that will see highly-trained agricultural extension officers visiting rural communities to train and educate farmers on hermetic storage, and establish a network of local dealers to supply the farmers. One of the dealers, Shafi Agro in Butajira, already sold 439 GrainPro bags since the program started. 

The financial incentives of storing are undeniable. In southern Ethiopia, with the harvest just in, the price for a 100 KG bag of corn is currently $19 USD. In five months, as supplies diminish, the market price will increase to $31 per bag, or a 60% gain. The small farmers can recoup the cost of their investment in hermetic bag by waiting 3 to 4 months before they sell their grain.

Despite the obvious benefits, creating the foundation for behavior change among small farmers is a long-term process and requires a long-term commitment. Sharing this effort among governments, donors, non-profits, international organizations and the technology providers is the key to catalyzing behavior change and improving the health, nutritional and financial outcomes for small farmers globally. 

And the right time to do this is now.

With increasing pressures to stop the use of dangerous pesticides on dry agricultural commodities, there is a clear desire among farmers for safer alternatives. Baraka Nurie and others in her neighborhood got it right when they decided to stop using chemicals and try out hermetic storage. Aside from the financial potential, they can be sure that their children are eating safe.