Agribusiness Support Fund (ASF) in partnership with Sindh Agriculture and Forestry Workers Co-ordination Organisation (SAFWCO) and local farmers has laid the path for the successful resolution of the long standing issues of chili growers of Sindh. Chili is an important cash crop of the Sindh province, particularly in Kunri located in Umer Kot District.
Production of red chili in the province is 80,000 tons per annum which accounts for around 86 percent of the total red chili production of Pakistan. However, the region is losing its importance as a chili hub ever since its output has started facing sanctions in the international markets.
The imposition of sanctions is a result of poor harvest and post harvest practices, which lead to contamination of the product and loss of colour due to the long duration (10 to 12 days) required for drying, which is carried out in the open fields, says a spokesman of the Agribusiness Support Fund (ASF) here on Tuesday.
Rainfall further exacerbates the problem since it results in the destruction of the harvested crop and also helps spur a fungal disease (the cancerous Aflotoxin) which is considered as one of the most serious food-related health hazards, he added.
In order to address the situation ASF entered in to a dialogue with the local stakeholders, including growers, traders, processors and local NGOs. Subsequently, ASF in partnership with SAFWCO, Sindh Rural Support Programme (SRSP) and local farmers has formed 29 Farmers Enterprise Groups consisting of 294 farmers. These farmers are planning to install 588 small units of solar dryers for chili drying on an experimental basis at an approximate cost of Rs 6.4 million.
These farmers collectively produce approximately 1,000 tons of chilies. Two participating farmers of this programme, Haji Ayub of village Khan Mohammad Kheskhilli and Ali Shah of village Haji Matal Dharaijo, revealed that they have full confidence in the performance of the solar dryers and have termed it a great success.
According to them the quality of the solar dried chilies has improved tremendously, especially after adopting technical advice of the ASF team, with respect to harvest and post harvest practices including washing of the produce before drying. The farmers were delighted to realise a 50 percent increase in the price of their produce from Rs 1,800 per 40kg to Rs 2800 per 40 kg in the open market. Moreover, the drying time of the chilies has also been reduced from 12 days to 5 days resulting in substantial reduction in labour costs, the spokesman added.