Avocado is a nutritious fruit to consumers and source of income however a bigger proportion is lost post harvest because many farmer have little or no skills on how best the crop is harvested.
Learning how to harvest avocado reduces post harvest losses resulting into increased income to farmers. Tools required during the process are harvesting clippers, bag and gloves these prevent the fruit from getting mechanical damage.
Harvesting process
Hold and cut the fruit leaving 1mm stalk to prolong the life of the fruit during storage.
Put the fruit in harvesting bag and once the bag is full empty the fruit in crates however these should be kept off the ground to maintain proper hygenic practices.
Weigh the harvested fruits to easily monitor the amount of harvest from field.
Stack crates in stacks of 5 crates with empty crate at bottom but crates used for harvesting should not be used for marketing the products.
Do not overfill cartes, store harvested fruits in shade to avoid as top fruits will be bruised.
Immediately transport fruits to store to control post harvest losses.
