Mohammad Afzal Hossain1*, Md. Abdul Awal2, Md. Rostom Ali2, Md. Monjurul Alam2, Afruz Zahan3, Arafat Ullah Khan1, and Md. Anwarul Haque4
1Farm Mechanization and Postharvest Technology Program Area, Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI), Gazipur, Bangladesh; 2Dept. of Farm Power and Machinery, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh, Bangladesh; 3Adaptive Research Division, Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI), Gazipur, Bangladesh; 4Grain Quality and Nutrition Division, Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI), Gazipur, Bangladesh.
*Correspondence: engr.afzal@yahoo.com (Dr. Mohammad Afzal Hossain, Senior Scientific Officer, Workshop Machinery and Maintenance Division, BRRI, Bangladesh).
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ABSTRACT
In Bangladesh, most farm households store paddy to meet their own consumption, facing emergency needs and seeds for the next sowing season in traditional storage technologies which are susceptible to insects, rodents, and mold. Training and Focus Group Discussions (FGD) were conducted to disseminate hermetic (PICS and GrainPro) bags in Mymensingh and Jashore regions. The participants learned the use of a moisture meter in paddy drying and safe storage. A pedagogical approach was followed in the FGD among 100 farmers of different ages with their spouses. Farmers’ perception about these bags was also taken. Traditional storage technologies namely, Dole, Motka, Guny Bag, Bamboo Gola, Dhari, Bamboo Auri, and Berh were identified which are not durable or functional in Bangladesh. Among these, Dole and Plastic Bag for consumption, and Motka and Plastic Drum were found suitable for paddy seed storage. Women taught neighbors about the operation of moisture meters and HB. About 87, 13% of farmers prefer 10-20 and 40-50 kg size HB in Mymensingh while 82 and 18% of farmers of Jashore prefer corresponding sizes of bags for seed purposes. For sale and consumption purposes, about 40, 35, and 20% of farmers preferred 500, 1000, and 2000 kg size HB in Mymensingh. On the contrary, about 26, 38, and 36% of farmers prefer the same size of HB in Jashore. The farmer showed keen interest in HB and was concerned about its high price. They opined price of 40-50 and 500-2000 kg size HB should be within Tk. 20 and Tk. 200, respectively. Both female and male farmers can store paddy in it properly. The price of the hermetic bag is high, ranked as the no. 1 problem followed by its availability in different sizes locally. However, HB was found effective in paddy storage in Bangladesh.
Keywords: Hermetic bag, Farmers, Friendly, Technology, Paddy, Seed, Storage, and Consumption.
Citation: Hossain MA, Awal MA, Ali MR, Alam MM, Zahan A, Khan AU, and Haque MA. (2023). Hermetic bag: a farmers friendly paddy storage technology in Bangladesh, Int. J. Mat. Math. Sci., 5(6), 52-59. https://doi.org/10.34104/ijmms.023.052059
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