Increasing Access to Post Harvest Technologies to Women Farmers

The report uses service design and customer journey mapping to analyze the mango value chain in Kenya, specifically focusing on women farmers in Tana River and Meru Counties. It identifies that while there is interest in technologies like cold storage and pulping machines to bypass brokers, adoption is hindered by high costs, lack of market access, and a prevailing farming strategy that prioritizes quantity over quality. The study concludes that technology alone is insufficient and must be accompanied by holistic support in business modeling, financing, and market creation.

• Mango production in Kenya grew by over 400% between 2001 and 2012, yet more than 25% of the crop is lost during and after harvesting.
• Women farmers often lack bargaining power because brokers control the grading and pricing process, sometimes cheating during counting or changing agreed prices.
• Current farming strategies prioritize quantity over quality because the majority of mangoes are sold to the processing industry, where higher quality does not reliably yield higher prices.
• Fruit fly traps are viewed as effective and a cheaper alternative to pesticides, but their efficacy is limited if neighboring farmers do not also use them.
• Harvesting tools and crates are seen as too expensive relative to the low profit margins, and farmers are reluctant to invest in them unless there is a stable export market that rewards quality.
• Cold storage is perceived as a way to avoid selling to processors at low prices and to manage weather-related access issues, but it is too expensive for individual farmers and requires collective governance.
• Value-addition technologies, such as pulping machines for juice, are popular for their potential to increase shelf-life and bypass brokers, but they require a complete business ecosystem including certification and market creation.
• Mango fruit yoghurt is considered a high-value product but is hindered by the lack of available milk due to drought, lack of tap water, and short shelf life.
• The report recommends complementary non-technological solutions, including grafting to optimize orchard size, developing a coordinated transport service to bypass brokers, and creating a national cooperative franchise for juice production.

APA

Stockholm Environment Institute (2017). Increasing Access to Post Harvest Technologies to Women Farmers. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/increasing-access-to-post-harvest-technologies-2017.pdf

Chicago

Stockholm Environment Institute. Increasing Access to Post Harvest Technologies to Women Farmers. 2017. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/increasing-access-to-post-harvest-technologies-2017.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Stockholm Environment Institute |title=Increasing Access to Post Harvest Technologies to Women Farmers |date=February 2017 |url=https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/increasing-access-to-post-harvest-technologies-2017.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{stockholmenvironmentinstitute2017increasing, author = {{Stockholm Environment Institute}}, title = {{Increasing Access to Post Harvest Technologies to Women Farmers}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2017}, month = feb, url = {https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/increasing-access-to-post-harvest-technologies-2017.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }