Theme: “Reducing Post-harvest losses for enhanced Food Security and Export Trade”

Sub-themes:

Private sector participation, policy and business enabling environment in PHM
Mycotoxins in agriculture, food safety and export trade
ICT, Science, technology and innovation in postharvest management
Youth and women in post-harvest management

Introduction

In recent years, global food production has reached a record high. However, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and World Bank reports about one third (30 to 40%) of the food produced globally is lost or wasted annually. This is equivalent to loss of 1.3 billion tons of food per year. These losses exacerbate food insecurity and have negative impact on the environment through wasting land, water, farm inputs and energy used in producing food that is not consumed. Moreover, postharvest losses reduce income to farmers and contribute to higher food prices. Post-harvest food loss is a major factor contributing to under-/malnutrition, economic instability and hunger across the developing world, directly impacting the lives of millions of poor, smallholder farming families. In many developing countries, due to inadequate handling and storage practices at the household level within the first three months after harvest, farmers lose up to 40 percent of their harvest to insects, pests, and mould.

In Tanzania agriculture is the backbone of the economy and contributes around 33% of the total GDP and over 80 % of export by value. Tanzania’s economy mainly depends on the export of its major agricultural commodities such as coffee, cashew nut, cereals, oilseed and grains for foreign earning. Thus, when these commodities are contaminated with mycotoxins there will be greater economic losses. Vital economic losses are related to their impact on human health, animal productivity, and both domestic and international trade. Poor agricultural and harvesting practices, improper drying, handling, packaging, storage, and transport conditions promote fungal growth, increasing the risk of mycotoxin production. Mycotoxin is a major problem in Sub-Saharan African countries where climatic conditions, agronomic and storage practices are favourable for insect infestation, fungal growth and toxin production.

The Tanzania Post-Harvest Management Platform (TPMP) in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Security and Cooperative, the Agricultural Non-State Actors Forum (ANSAF), the College of Agriculture of the Sokoine University of Agriculture, and HELVETAS through its Grain Postharvest Loss Prevention Project, is organizing the 2^nd Tanzania Post-Harvest Management Conference. This two-day conference will be held at the Sokoine University of Agriculture on 18^th and 19^th March 2020. The aim of the conference is to discuss pertinent issues and challenges on post-harvest management and mycotoxins as an important component of food security and export trade in Tanzania and demonstrate ongoing efforts in reducing PHLs

Over 200 participants are expected to attend this conference which will provide a platform for professionals from academia, government, research, private sector, media, NGOs, civil society organizations and the industrial sector to discuss key scientific, business and regulatory issues. Distinguished keynote speakers in the area of post-harvest management and mycotoxins will grace the occasion together with other scientists and professionals in the field.

This conference is part of the on-going effort to implement the National Post-Harvest Management Strategy for Tanzania (2019-2029). The closing ceremony will be marked by key takeaway messages and an “award” event to recognize individuals or organizations who have significantly contributed towards post-harvest management and mycotoxins contamination in Tanzania.

Invited Paper Presentations:

Organizers plan to invite domestic and regional institutions to participate in the two-day event. Academia and universities, (such as Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA), Moshi Cooperatives University, Universities of Mzumbe, University of Dar es Salaam, University of Dodoma as well as think tanks such as ESRF, REPOA and DALBERG), private sector (agro-dealer, technology producers/importers, primary producers, processors, stockiest, exporters), large and medium scale investors, micro and small-medium enterprises (MSME), cooperatives and farmers associations, public sector from Sector Lead Ministries (ASLM), departments, and agencies as well as development partners, financial institutions and civil society organizations.

All interested participants are invited to submit abstracts on the conference themes listed above. We welcome interdisciplinary and cross-disciplinary oriented abstracts. Authors may also submit abstracts on other themes relevant to the wider field of postharvest management, mycotoxins and agricultural transformation. Abstracts must be in English and should not exceed 300 words. Submitted abstracts should contain name(s) of author(s), affiliations and email addresses. The submitted abstract should clearly indicate the preferred mode of presentation (oral or poster).

Timeframe

S/n	Activity	Timeline
1	Submission of Abstracts:	15^th February 2020
2	Feedback on submitted abstracts	21^st February 2020
3	Submission of full papers:	4^th March 2020
4	Submission of power point presentation:	6^th March 2020
5	Layout and Printing of abstracts:	10^th March 2020