Re-framing post-harvest losses through a situated analysis of the pineapple value chain in Uganda

Abstract

Post-harvest loss (PHL) assessments are usually commodity-oriented and approaches for reducing these losses tend to rely on technological interventions for improving product handling and quality. However, such narrow problem framing neglects the situatedness of PHL, particularly when perishable crops of heterogeneous quality are traded through networks of small-scale value chain actors, as is common in the Global South. To illustrate our critique, we lean on systems as a conceptual construct to unpack PHL with the empirical example of the pineapple value chain in Uganda. Specifically, we aim (i) at surfacing multiple actors’ perspectives related to the spectrum of losses and (ii) to improve understanding of their strategies to deal with related problems. We draw from participant observation, semi-structured interviews and group meetings with farmers, brokers, traders and interlinked actors such as small-scale processors and pig farmers. Our study shows how they navigate existing resource constraints and how their practices to recover potential food losses are embedded in their local food systems. The contextualized understandings of quality and the consequences of what can be considered a loss, challenge dominant narratives about high levels of PHL in Sub-Saharan Africa. Extending system boundaries beyond the fresh-fruit value chain revealed how interlinked actors were able to benefit from using ‘damaged’ fruits. Our findings encourage going beyond generic quality systems towards more diverse understandings of quality and loss. Investigating losses in a systemic and context-specific way can put local perspectives at the forefront to encourage actor-driven approaches for sustainable PHL reduction.