Sophie Walker (ACDI/VOCA) AflaSTOP: Storage and drying for aflatoxin prevention project Roundtable of aflatoxin experts on “Building a multi-stakeholder approach to mitigate aflatoxin contamination of food and feed” Brussels, Monday 25th January 2016

1. AflaSTOP
Sophie Walker, CoP

2. §
Highlighted areas are
known to have aflatoxin
problems
§
Equates to ~ 1.7 million
acres of farm land
§
If 24% of the maize is
contaminated in
highlighted areas, then:
▫ 2.4 million children could be
How is aflatoxin affecting Kenya?

3. Comparison of aflatoxin range in two
regions
57% of maize tested
looked fine to eat
Average aflatoxin level
Meru
Below 10 ppb 10-49 ppb 50-99 ppb 100-149 ppb Above 150 ppb
4% 16% 11% 8% 61%
Below 10 ppb 10-49 ppb 50-99 ppb 100-149 ppb Above 150 ppb
21% 26% 9% 8% 35%

4. Storage
Activity

5. Aflatoxin increases through 6 months storage
• Meru maize stored in PP bags (normal storage method for smallholder farmers) which started with
aflatoxin levels at ~1,900ppb increased at a rate of 24% per month
• Makueni maize stored in PP bags which started at ~ 500ppb increased at a rate of 92% per month
• All hermetic storage decreased the rate of aflatoxin increase but not all hermetic storage was as good
at reducing the rate of increase
• Devices prone to insect damage suffered higher aflatoxin increase levels particularly in the later months
• The plastic silo worked as well as any other device in 75% of replicates – but the remaining 25% failed
dismally
• While different moisture levels made no difference to the rate aflatoxin increases (testing at below
13.5% and between 14 – 15%), in replicates with higher moisture levels other anaerobic activity caused
problems which makes storage of wet grain in hermetic devices unviable
• Hermetic storage stopped significant insect damage increasing, maintained moisture content and
slowed up discolouration of the grains

6. Hermetic devices which controlled aflatoxin
increasesDevice % increase in aflatoxin
level per month
Purchase price in
Kenya
Grain Pro Bulk Bag: Up to 1000 kg No increase $190 + frame
PICs Bag: 90 kg 1.8% $2.50
Metal Silo: 90 – 3000 kgs 3.1% $144 (e.g. 300 kgs)
•
Over 63% of farmers still had maize in store at 6 months, around 40% at 9 months
•
93% of smallholder farmers in Makueni purchase insecticide to treat the maize they
are going to store – between Ksh80 – 120 per bag.
•
Only ~6% of farming families did not have a dedicate place of storage
•
Farmers sell because they need cash – they have had no income during the
planting season – not because they cannot store their maize
•
Rat damage has been seen in 2.67% of susceptible devices
•
1.79% of farmers have had significant problems with insects – all in metal silos
•
Less 1% have had a problem with mould

7. Economics of purchasing storage devices
Metal Silos: Capacities in kg
Woven
Poly-
propylene
PICs
Bag
Grain
Pro
Bag
180 270 360 450 540 720
Purchase Cost (ksh) 30 250 19,000 6,400 7,900 9,900 11,900 12,900 14,900
Insecticide Cost 120 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Capacity (kg) 90 90 1,000 180 270 360 450 540 720
Useful Life (years) 1 2 10 15 15 15 15 15 15
Cost/kg/Year 1.7 1.4 1.9 2.4 2 1.8 1.8 1.6 1.4
Purchase price per 90
kg bag
30 250 1,727 3,200 2,633 2,475 2,380 2,150 1,863
• The upfront cost of metal silos and the grain safe are too much to be affordable for nearly all farmers.
• Farmers like the no insecticide aspect of the PICs bags and adopt its use because it controls insects and
they do not eat insecticide
• Longer term implication with reference to aflatoxin is household maize will be stored without significant
increases, but maize for the market will be stored as cheaply as possible
Price willing to pay
(kshs)
0 <10 20 30 40 50 100 150 200 250 300 400 500
Number of farmers 27 3 12 2 2 26 35 11 20 3 4 4 2
Percentage of farmers 17.9 2.0 7.9 1.3 1.3 17.2 23.2 7.3 13.2 2.0 2.6 2.6 1.3
Price Willing to Pay per Bag to Control Insects

8. Portable Shallow Bed
Batch Dryer
https://youtu.be/XH7ZtcXlLVo

9. •
Investment cost (Kenya) around $750
•
Handles between 1.5 – 2.5mt per day
•
Burns 12 kgs cobs per hour as heat source
•
1.4 litre petrol per hour
•
Requires one full time furnace operator
•
Transport by trailer, pick up, donkey cart,
motor bike
•
Manufacturing requires some specialized
skills but can be built by the informal sector
•
Manufacture and service provider make a
profit and therefore it may be appealing to
the market
Key features

10. Drying activity
If grain has to be below a certain moisture level
for effective storage we need drying solutions to
make the storage solutions work

11. Portable Shallow Bed
Batch Dryer
https://youtu.be/XH7ZtcXlLVo

12. •
Investment cost (Kenya) around $750
•
Handles between 1.5 – 2.5mt per day
•
Burns 12 kgs cobs per hour as heat
source
•
1.4 litre petrol per hour
•
Transport by trailer, pick up, donkey cart,
motor bike
•
Manufacturing requires some specialized
skills but can be built by the informal
sector
•
Offers profit margins to manufacturers
and service providers
Key features

13. Operating costs for 1 or 3 dryers
Running 3 machines in one
location is 4.9 times more
profitable than running one
machine
Number machines 1 3
Purchase machine $750.00 $2,250.00
Annual operating costs
45 days labour $450.00 $450.00
Fuel costs (assuming 20 - 18.5%, 3
batches per day to 13.5%) $203.41 $610.23
Transport from farm to farm $0.00
Maintainenance per year to the
machine and plenum $64.01 $192.02
Total costs $717.42 $1,252.25
Charge per bag (50 kg) $0.87 $0.87
Charge per mt $17.40 $17.40
Total income (3 batches per day,45
days pa) $1,174.50 $3,523.50
Profit / loss $457.08 $2,271.25
Estimated profit per day $29.36 $50.47
Year 1 repayment of machine $375.00 $1,125.00
Year 1 balance left over after
recouping 50% of investment cost $82.08 $1,146.25

14. Vision
•
Medium to large scale farmers investing in 2 – 3
units
•
SME’s investing in 1 – 6 units servicing smallholder
farmers (1 – 5 acres)
•
Grain aggregators (including cooperatives and
traders) or equipment operators running fleets of
dryers 6 – 50 units
•
Lease financing options to increase rapid scale out
of technology

15. Swalker@acdivoca.org
www.acdivoca.org/aflastop-publications
http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/ktn/index.php/video/watch/2000098148/-
the-next-frontier-a-machine-that-dries-maize-to-minimize-potential-losses

17. www.acdivoca.org
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