Postharvest Management and Food Safety

Program Brief

The lack of training on the proper handling of harvested food products has left most farmers in Tanzania to discard and throw away quality food that should not have been wasted. Poor storage and processing practices when food products are collected from farms or suppliers tend to expose consumers to food-borne diseases such as mycotoxins and others linked to food safety issues. To address these challenges, MAVUNOLAB conducts post-harvest management and food safety training to help farmers, food suppliers, vendors, small-scale food processors, and other value-chain actors adopt practices that enhance food safety, control spoilage, and lead to reduction of food waste

Strategic Objective

To enhance food safety standards in Tanzania through hands-on training, efficient postharvest storage management, proper food handling, processing, cleaning, drying, and cooling practices that limit food spoilage.

Key Strategic Actions

  1. Develop postharvest management and food safety educational and training materials for different crops and food products.
  2.  Establish food safety training needs before and after the launching of training programs.
  3. Conduct food safety and postharvest management training targeting farmers, food vendors, suppliers, processors, and other food industry actors.
  4. Partner with government agencies, researchers, companies, and organizations in the development of national food safety manuals, policy frameworks and standards.
  5. Educate consumers and the public about food-borne diseases resulting from improper handling of food products.