Constraints | Proposed mitigation options |
1. Factors related to rice harvesting, threshing and cleaning | |
The use of sickle and knife is dominant and result in significant qualitative loss and time. | ・ Provision of small scale harvester such as reapers and mini-combine harvesters and improving capacity of smallholder to acquire them. ・ Provision of thresher/cleaners such as ASI Thresher. ・ Establishment of reward system for quality at all stage of rice production and processing |
No mechanical harvesting is practice, except among small number of large scale producers | |
Rice cleaning is manually carried out and results in poor and inefficient cleaning operations | |
2. Problems related to quantity and quality of rice supplied to mills | |
Non homogeneity of the paddy supplied to the mills for processing results in poor quality milled rice. | ・ Use of good quality seeds by farmers. ・ Adoption of quality standard in the marketing of paddy. ・ Use of rice thresher/cleaner during rice harvesting. ・ Provision of cooperative aggregation centers. ・ Establishment of reward system for quality at all stage of rice production and processing. |
Poorly dried parboiled rice results in grain heating up during milling. | |
Contamination of paddy with stones, metals, straws, seeds of other crops and other materials. | |
Short supply of paddy during certain period of the year | |
3. Problems related to technical efficiency of rice mills | |
Unreliable power supply and high cost of diesel fuel to run milling machines and engines. | ・ Possible development of solar powered motor to turn mills as in solar powered water pumps. ・ Provision of electric power to area where this is not available at present and provision of dedicated power line to the mill sites. ・ Capacity building for operators and provision of paddy cleaning machine at mills. ・ Sensitization of farmers on good postharvest practices especially threshing and winnowing. |
Lake of and high cost of machine spare parts and frequent breakdown of rice mills and diesel engines. | |
Poor knowledge among rice mill operators on proper operational methods for the mills. | |
High level of stones and other impurities in paddy received at the mills. | |
4. Problems related to quality of milled rice and marketing. | |
High percentage of broken and partially milled rice in finished product. | ・ Development of value addition technology for broken rice processing into products that command better price. ・ Develop of proper marketing channel either through cooperative or system that will benefit the farmers, processor and consumers. ・ Encourage private sector investment in packaging and branding of locally processed rice. ・ Provision of soft loans vehicles for rice processors’ group to ease movement of paddy from point of production to mills and from mills to market |
Poor market channel and standard measure. | |
Lack of proper packaging and branding of locally milled rice. | |
Poor and high cost of transportation system. | |
5. Problems related to rice parboiling and drying | |
Use of poor and inefficient parboiling practices and technology | ・ Dissemination and adoption of improved low cost parboiling technology ・ Enhancement of processors knowledge on good manufacturing practices (GMP) in rice processing for good quality products. ・ Demonstration of simple and adoptable technology for parboiled rice and drying that enhance quality |
Lack of enhance knowledge on improved parboiling practices and quality assurance during parboiling | |
Poor drying technology and technique resulting in poor milled rice | |
6. Problems relating to gender in rice postharvest system | |
Rice harvesting is dominated by men. | ・ Improvement of the parboiling practices to encourage men to take part. ・ With the current practice men are likely to dominate rice harvesting and milling for a long time to come except if the labor required is reduced. ・ Development of efficient and environmental sustainable source of energy. ・ If well packaged men may consider taking strategic part in marketing of milled rice ・ Development of appropriate technology |
Rice parboiling are dominated by women | |
Milling processes are dominated by men. | |
Breaking of firewood and rice drying are mainly carried out by youths. | |
Paddy marketing is dominated by men and milled rice trade by women. | |
As scale of technology is increased, women are pushed out of rice business |