KARACHI: PHDEC conducted a webinar on the topic of “Post-harvest Management, Logistics and Storage of Potato”.
The aim of the webinar was to bring the maximum of the stakeholders on board to discuss harvesting, post-harvest handling, transportation, bagging, loading, unloading, storages issues of potato to minimize the post-harvest losses and availability of premium quality potato in domestic and high-end-market.
Experts from Hazara Agriculture Research Station and Potato Research Institute, Sahiwal and Potato Growers Society Okara were invited to enlighten the potato growers/farmers on the subject matter.
Dr Nayyar Iqbal from Hazara Agriculture Research Station emphasized that farmers may avoid post-harvest losses if they would manage proper transportation and effective storage after harvesting of potatoes.
Dr Syed Ijaz-Ul-Hasan from Potato Research Institute, Sahiwal provided a detailed overview of pre & post-harvest issues, drying and curing of potatoes, packaging, storage, sorting & grading and transportation of potatoes and explained how improper cold storage facilities causing sweetness of potatoes. He further explicated the supply chain of potato in Punjab.
Ch Maqsood Ahmed Jatt added that there should be Potato Export Board in place, so that all export and production related issues of potato could be taken on board and resolved promptly.
He said that PHDEC should help to replace the conventional bags with small packing bags.
He further suggested that issuing authority of the Certificate of Origin (COO) should be Potato Grower Co-operative Society rather than chambers.
He emphasized that PHDEC should conduct a few seminars on the topic, “How to Export Potatoes” in Okara and that PHDEC should take up the issue of delayed clearance of remittances to the exporters with SBP. He concluded with the appreciation to the PHDEC’s initiative of preparing product manual for potato and organizing such kind of capacity building webinars/workshops.
A large number of participants from growers, processors, exporters, R&D and academia participated in the webinar and appreciated the PHDEC’s initiative of conducting the webinar on an important topic of post-harvest management.
Participants suggested that organizing physical activities would be more fruitful for stakeholders. CEO-PHDEC thanked all participants for attending the webinar and extended PHDEC’s full support in any product development and market promotion related matters to the participants.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
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