Level 6
Storage
Keep products safe while waiting for the right buyer
Storage gives you time: time to wait for a better price, to supply buyers all year, and to move goods when transport is ready. But stored products can also spoil. This level shows you what causes losses in storage and how to prevent them with simple, low-cost habits.
Farmers, traders, processors and groups who hold crops or products between harvest and sale, and anyone considering a storage service as a business.
How this level is written
The lessons are practical teaching suggestions written by AfricAgric. The reading list is background reading, not the source of every sentence. Examples with numbers are invented and say so. Use the level as a way to think, then check facts and rules for your own place.
What you will learn
- Name the main causes of loss in storage: moisture, heat, pests, rough handling and dirt.
- Explain why dryness matters and how to protect dry products from damp.
- Set up a simple routine to keep pests out and inspect stock.
- Handle fresh produce gently and know when cooling or special storage is worth considering.
- Keep simple stock records and use the oldest stock first.
Where this level fits
Level 5 helped you pack your product. This level is about keeping it in good condition until it is sold. Storage is also a business of its own: some people earn by providing clean, dry or cool storage for others. Level 7 covers logistics.
Parts of this level
- Part 1Why storage matters, and why products spoilStorage buys time. Moisture, heat, pests and handling take it away.
- Part 2Moisture and drynessDry products must be dry before storing, and must stay dry afterwards.
- Part 3Pests and cleanlinessA clean, tight, inspected store keeps rats, insects and birds out.
- Part 4Fresh produce and stock controlGentle handling, cool and shaded storage, and a simple way to keep track of stock.
- WorkbookAll exercises from this level in one place, with space to think and a printable layout.
- QuizCheck what you learned. Answers and short explanations are hidden until you choose to show them.
Not advice
This level is educational. It is not legal, financial, regulatory, nutritional or medical advice. Rules, fees and programmes change, so check every requirement with the authority named before you act.
Background reading
- Small-Scale Postharvest Handling Practices: A Manual for Horticultural Crops (4th edition) — L. Kitinoja and A. A. Kader, University of California, Davis (hosted by FAO)
- Value from village processing (Diversification booklet 4) — Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Peter Fellows