Abstract
Few studies examine post-harvest fish losses using a gender lens or collect sex-disaggregated data. This mixed-methods study assessed fish losses experienced by female and male value chain actors in a fishery in western Zambia to determine who experiences losses, why, and to what extent. Results indicate that participation in the fishery value chain is gendered and most losses occur during post-harvest activities. Discussions with fishers, processors, and traders suggest the value chain is more fluid than often depicted, with people making calculated decisions to sell fresh or dried fish depending on certain conditions, and mostly driven by the need to avoid losses and attain higher prices. The study shows that gender norms shape the rewards and risks offered by the value chain. This could be the reason why a greater proportion of women than men experienced physical losses in our study sample. Female processors lost three times the mass of their fish consignments compared to male processors. Technical constraints (lack of processing technologies) and social constraints (norms and beliefs) create gender gaps in post-harvest losses. Addressing unequal gender relations in value chains, whilst also promoting the use of loss-reducing technologies, could increase fish supply and food security in small-scale fisheries.
Highlights
Reducing food loss and waste has garnered increased attention as an important means to improve food security and environmental sustainability [1,2,3]
Based on our analysis of the Exploratory Fish Loss Assessment Method (EFLAM) data, we present a diagrammatic representation of the fluidity in this localized value chain on the fishing camps (Figure 3), where fish products move between traditional nodes in the value chain and where certain actors move between nodes depending on their circumstances and the gamble decision described above
Whilst some of the literature suggests that the success of projects that aim to reduce post-harvest losses depends on the effective transfer of technology and information [16,27], this paper argues that the sustained use of such technologies by women and men value chain actors requires implementing interventions that focus on improving unequal gender relations in these contexts
Summary
Reducing food loss and waste has garnered increased attention as an important means to improve food security and environmental sustainability [1,2,3]. Reducing food loss and waste is especially pertinent to fish value chains in low-income countries [4,5], where millions of people rely on aquatic resources for food and income [6,7]. It is estimated that a third of all the food that is produced globally is lost or wasted [8,9], though post-harvest losses are rarely estimated in fish value chain or stock assessments [10]. Fish products are central in the diets of some 200 million Africans who rely on fish as their primary source of protein [15] and combating post-harvest losses would contribute to increased fish supply [16]
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