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The identified location for this spoke is within Chandwad town, at the main market.

10.1 F

C

E

T

Onion, guava and sapota are the major focus crops grown in the catchment of Chandwad spoke. Since all the crops mentioned here are low value crops with low trade margins, it would not be economically viable to put these crops through cold chain infrastructure. Hence, an ambient pack house is suggested to be established at Chandwad .

Estimated throughputs have been identified based on present production in the catchment area, the present capacities of existing similar infrastructures/facilities, potential for interventions, financial viability and stakeholders’ consultations (see value chain analysis).

Onion is graded and packed at farm level itself, only storage facilities have been proposed for onion; hence, throughput for onion grading and packing has not been estimated.

The arrival pattern of the focus crops in the proposed facility shall be according to the crop season as follows:

 Crops  Jan   Feb  Mar  Apr  May  Jun  Jul  Aug  Sep  Oct  Nov  Dec 

Guava                                   

Sapota                      

The seasonality chart shows that the pack shed at Chandwad shall remain occupied round the year. Guava is harvested from November to May and Sapota is harvested round the year. The facility may also cater to vegetables for the local market.

10.2 P

F

Facilities have been designed on the basis of requirement of the focus crops. As none of the focus crops makes it a viable proposition to be treated into cold chain infrastructure, focus has been laid on better and efficient methods of handling and quicker evacuation to the consumption markets. Since there are no facilities already existing for these crops in the region, the pack house would also serve as a pilot for many more such initiatives. The facility would provide segregated amenities – by gender and working zones. The proposed facilities are as follows:

10.2.1 Pack House  

An ambient pack house has been designed to handle 50 MT of produce per day. The sub components of the pack house are as listed below;

ƒ Sorting and Grading facilities

ƒ Inspection and Packaging area – tables standard stainless steel type. ƒ Weighing area – certified weighing machines.

ƒ Material handling equipment – pallet movers, trolleys. ƒ Waste disposal systems.

ƒ Vehicle waiting areas. ƒ Crate washing system.

Process flow in PackHouse: 

Process flow for the produce handled in the pack house shall be as depicted below:

Technology /  Facilities  Description  Quality Check  • Quality of the farm produces shall be assessed at the pack house based on certain criteria  such as maturity level, size of fruits etc.   Sorting  and  Grading  •  Manual sorting and grading is suggested, which is cost effective.   • Sorting and grading tables are proposed in the pack shed.  Packing  • Packaging tables would be provided for manual packing of guava and sapota.  

• Packaging  material  used  at  the  pack  house  would  depend  on  the  requirements  of  the  destination markets. Perforated polybags and CFB boxes shall be promoted. 

• Appropriate packing material store for streamlined material flow.  Dispatch   • The same area would be offloaded on a daily basis. 

• The packaged produce would be staged on the raised platform.  • Produce is expected be transported in trucks of 10 ‐16 MT capacity.  

Guava can be stored for about 10 days at room temperature (180-230 C) in perforated polybags. This fact is especially important when handling winter fruit as ambient temperatures can be taken advantage of. As Guava is susceptible to moisture loss and associated weight loss, the perforated bags trap moisture while still allowing the fruit to breathe and allowing respiratory heat to dissipate.

While the shelf life can be extended upto 20 days by keeping them at low temperature of 50 C and 75-85% relative humidity, following of basic packaging guidelines will be sufficient to extend reach of the produce. For distant markets, wooden or corrugated fibre board boxes with cushioning materials viz. paddy straw, dry grass, guava leaves or rough paper also helps

in keeping the fruit safe. Given the current market backdrop, no immediate cold chain application is proposed.

Sapota is a tropical crop and needs warm (10-38 ºC) and humid climate (70% RH) for growth and can be cultivated throughout the year. Coastal climate is best suited for its cultivation. This fruit is highly perishable but with careful handling can be stored in ordinary conditions for 7-8 days period after harvesting. At a storage temperature of 15 ºC, the shelf life can be increased for a period of 15-20 days. Storage can be further enhanced to 21-25 days by removing ethylene and adding 5-10% CO2 to the storage atmosphere. Yet, in current market dynamics, the associated costs (capital and operating energy expense) are not considered viable.

Due to annual availability of the fruit, it fetches minimal domestic price and hence refined handling practices alone are suggested to suffice suitable quality enhancement. The produce must be packaged in stiff bodied cartons or crates and cushioning materials can be interspersed with ethylene absorbents for transport and presale storage.

Aggregation Mechanism 

The spoke will establish direct relationship with farmers and provide extension and training support to them for best farming practices, better post harvest handling practices, efficient use of inputs and technology transfer etc. The spoke will develop aggregation mechanism and send trucks/pick-ups to the aggregation points. Farmers will be encouraged to come together as producer companies and set up and manage aggregation points wherever possible. The spoke may also invest in developing infrastructure at aggregation points such as platforms, sheds, etc.

Logistics  

The produce will come to the spoke from aggregation points and farms in various modes of transport such as trucks (4 MT), vans, etc. Expected peak arrival of vehicles is about 26, which would include following approximate number of vehicles;

ƒ Guava / Sapota: 16 ƒ Onion: 10

Estimated peak outgoing number of vehicles is 6 trucks per day. No reefer transport has been proposed in the spoke as no cold-chain application is foreseen as produce currently lacks export business linkages.

Small capacity field vehicles, load 800 kgs to 1MT, are incorporated in the project to serve as feeders from local farms or aggregation points as backward integration

10.2.2 Onion Storage 

Storage facility for onion has been provided at the facility. Capacity of onion storage has been kept to be 500 MT. This would be kept as a separate section in the facility to prevent odour contamination in other areas.

These storehouses would be constructed as per existing guidelines for storage of dry onions, incorporating enclosures that allow ventilation while protecting from overhead inclement weather. The roof would be extended to protect from driving rain while protecting from direct

sunlight, boundary walls of mesh material protecting the produce from rodents while allowing adequate ventilation. The base platform would be raised to truck bed height easing loading and unloading operations.

10.2.3 Other Facilities 

Business Centre 

Business Centre is proposed to house the administrative block for the market. There will also be rooms/sections which may be rented out to reputed NGOs, companies, grass-root level organizations such as microfinance institutions, etc as office spaces.

Other facilities proposed here are: ƒ Canteen

ƒ Solid Waste Management Area ƒ DG Room

ƒ Water Supply Facility ƒ Parking Area