NEED
According to a recent study, India is incurring post-harvest losses of fruits and vegetables worth Rs 2 lakh crore (Rs. 2 Trillion) per year, due to lack of storage and processing facilities. The food processing industries can have economic savings by avoiding wastage of costlier energy. Post-harvest losses in the developing countries are estimated to be 30–40% in the case of fruit and vegetables. The solutions involving solar energy collection devices or solar dryers have been proposed to utilize free, renewable and non-polluting energy from the sun. Solar dryers can reduce crop losses and significantly improve the quality of the dried product.
Advantages of Solar Drying
☼ Professional drying technology
☼ Protection from insects, birds, climatic conditions, dirt, etc.
☼ Preservation of nutritional property of the product
☼ Improved product quality
☼ Universal application also for sensitive products
☼ Product can compete in the export market
☼ Operation without fuel consumption
☼ No continuous supervision necessary
☼ Reduction of drying time
☼ High returns to farmers
☼ Hygienic drying conditions
☼ Low or zero operating cost
☼ Maintain colour and texture of food products
APPLICATION
Sectors:
☼ Agriculture
☼ Chemical
☼ Biotechnology
☼ Food
☼ Polymer
☼ Fireworks
☼ Ceramics
☼ Pharmaceuticals
☼ Pulp and paper
☼ Mineral processing
☼ Wood processing
☼ Paint
Products can be dried:
☼ Fruits and vegetables
☼ Cereals and pulses
☼ Spices and herbs
☼ Spices and herbs
☼ Fish and meat
☼ Tea and coffee
☼ Rubber latex
☼ Coconut (Copra)