Energy Use in the Post-Harvest Food (PHF) System of Developing Countries

Parikh, J.K. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0558-8427 & Syed, S. (1986). Energy Use in the Post-Harvest Food (PHF) System of Developing Countries. IIASA Collaborative Paper. IIASA, Laxenburg, Austria: CP-86-021

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Abstract

This article reports on the methodology and results of the study on estimation of energy consumption in post-harvest-food (PHF) system in developing countries. The components of the PHF system are: food processing, transportation, storage and cooking. The study has rather ambitious coverage for 70 processed commodities in 90 countries of Africa, Latin America, Far East and Near East. This was possible because of computer tapes available at FAO for a wide variety of data required for such an analysis. Of course, extensive checking was required for each country but much of the approximations remain, leading only to broad implications. Despite the difficulties with precise data, it seems reasonable to draw the following conclusions from the available information: The post-harvest-food system requires 2 to 4 times more energy than the energy on farms. Commercial energy is often used for food processing, such as milling, crushing, and food transport, and to some extent for cooking. The share of commercial energy in total energy used in the PHF system ranges between 22% in Africa to 80% in Near East. The levels of energy consumption in the PHF system depends on income levels and extent of urbanization and whether a country has locally available fossil fuels or forests. In addition, different components of the PHF system are sensitive to different parameters. For example, energy in food processing depends on cropping and dietary patterns, whether food is exported or imported, whereas food transport depends on the size of the countries and location of urban areas with respect to farms. These parameters are discussed here for the four world regions as well as for the 90 developing countries as a whole. Country-specific insights are given graphically due to lack of space to report all data individually.

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