>New tray dryers to expedite spices post-production: Statesman News Service
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DURGAPUR, March 18: Through advancements in heat power engineering, the Central Mechanical Engineering Research Institute (CMERI) has developed new tray dryers to improve the post-harvest process applied to ginger, turmeric and chilli.
CMERI ~ a Durgapur-based CSIR organisation ~ has already signed an MoU with the Tribal Development Foundation, Arunachal Pradesh. The conventional post-harvesting system applied to dried vegetable ginger rhizomes is time consuming and costly. The ginger rhizomes must be washed twice or thrice and then sun-dried for a day to remove excess water. The rhizomes are then packed in gunny bags and shifted to market. Experts argue that the post-harvest process applied to ginger would benefit from a complete overhaul. The CMERI has come forward to take on the task, in cooperation with North-East farmers.
The CMERI’s newly-installed drying system utilises hot air as its drying medium. Thermostat-controlled air enters the drying system and gradually passes through trays of produce, vented finally through an exhaust. Dr SN Maity, director of the CMERI, explained: “The hot air is circulated in a zig-zag route, increasing the contact time between the gas and the produce resulting in increased system efficiency.”
After the MoU was signed, the CMERI began working on the development of five post-harvest process centres operating in Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh. “The centres will work on the drying, grinding and packaging of spice crops,” Dr Maity said.
Ginger, turmeric and chili are major cash crops for the North East states such as Mizoram and AP. The states have been in dire need of a sustained post-harvest process to preserve crops and add value to it. In absence of such a process, farmers have been selling crops immediately after harvest, causing them extensive cash loss.
Dr Maity said: “In the course of their work, the CMERI has decided to evolve a generic model of value addition through the deployment of low cost, stand-alone agro-processing units in various areas in disadvantaged states. Their objective is to boost the rural economy.” To start with, the CMERI has proposed establishing district-level centres in Mizoram and AP, which would be governed by Self Help Groups or NGOs.
Drying systems have held a prominent place in the global market since China introduced commercial vegetable drying systems in the year 2000. An earlier attempt had been made in India to dry ginger in solar cabinet dryers. Based on regional meteorological data collated over several years, Assam Agricultural University’s Agricultural Engineering department developed a type of solar cabinet dryer to ensure that a proportion of the huge ginger surplus could be saved, thus minimising post-harvest losses. The university’s solar cabinet dryer was found to be useful for drying roughly peeled longitudinally split forms of ginger rhizomes to a safe moisture level within four to six days.
CMERI ~ a Durgapur-based CSIR organisation ~ has already signed an MoU with the Tribal Development Foundation, Arunachal Pradesh. The conventional post-harvesting system applied to dried vegetable ginger rhizomes is time consuming and costly. The ginger rhizomes must be washed twice or thrice and then sun-dried for a day to remove excess water. The rhizomes are then packed in gunny bags and shifted to market. Experts argue that the post-harvest process applied to ginger would benefit from a complete overhaul. The CMERI has come forward to take on the task, in cooperation with North-East farmers.
The CMERI’s newly-installed drying system utilises hot air as its drying medium. Thermostat-controlled air enters the drying system and gradually passes through trays of produce, vented finally through an exhaust. Dr SN Maity, director of the CMERI, explained: “The hot air is circulated in a zig-zag route, increasing the contact time between the gas and the produce resulting in increased system efficiency.”
After the MoU was signed, the CMERI began working on the development of five post-harvest process centres operating in Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh. “The centres will work on the drying, grinding and packaging of spice crops,” Dr Maity said.
Ginger, turmeric and chili are major cash crops for the North East states such as Mizoram and AP. The states have been in dire need of a sustained post-harvest process to preserve crops and add value to it. In absence of such a process, farmers have been selling crops immediately after harvest, causing them extensive cash loss.
Dr Maity said: “In the course of their work, the CMERI has decided to evolve a generic model of value addition through the deployment of low cost, stand-alone agro-processing units in various areas in disadvantaged states. Their objective is to boost the rural economy.” To start with, the CMERI has proposed establishing district-level centres in Mizoram and AP, which would be governed by Self Help Groups or NGOs.
Drying systems have held a prominent place in the global market since China introduced commercial vegetable drying systems in the year 2000. An earlier attempt had been made in India to dry ginger in solar cabinet dryers. Based on regional meteorological data collated over several years, Assam Agricultural University’s Agricultural Engineering department developed a type of solar cabinet dryer to ensure that a proportion of the huge ginger surplus could be saved, thus minimising post-harvest losses. The university’s solar cabinet dryer was found to be useful for drying roughly peeled longitudinally split forms of ginger rhizomes to a safe moisture level within four to six days.
FINANCE & ACCOUNTS @ CSIR 