POSTHARVEST HANDLING OF FRUITS IN GANYE LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF ADAMAWA STATE, NIGERIA

Harvesting fruits at the right maturity stage is important because their shelf life is naturally limited. Postharvest handling and treatment procedures are important factors that determine the quality and shelf life of the produce. Inadequate handling practices and the lack of effective postharvest treatments are major contributors to postharvest losses. Postharvest handling starts only after fruits have been harvested, and the technique used for harvesting varies depending on the specific characteristics of each fruit and the resources available. Proper handling practices, including cleaning, grading, sorting, packing, storing, and transporting, can greatly minimize these losses. Additionally, contemporary techniques like packing in a controlled environment assist reduce microbial activity and increase shelf life. The information used in this study was gathered from a number of pertinent sources. Inadequate methods, such as harvesting at the incorrect maturity stage or packing without first eliminating field heat, are the main reasons of fruit loss that have been found. Postharvest losses and poor handling procedures are acknowledged as key concerns in the research area. To address these challenges and decrease fruit waste, agricultural extension agents could offer training sessions on effective postharvest handling procedures. Farmers would gain a better understanding of postharvest loss prevention and causes thanks to this. In SPSS Version 26, descriptive statistics were used to evaluate the data. According to the results, 91.6% of respondents use the pot-in-pot method and air drying to preserve fruits during power outages, 64.1% store mangos for short-term resale, and only 19.1% store unripe bananas for consumption and commercial purposes. Additionally, 63.4% of respondents are married. Baskets, bags, and boxes are examples of common storage containers. Major postharvest issues include vast transportation distances to markets and physical damage owing to traditional storage materials used for bananas and mangos, 58.8% of respondents are aware of fruit processing, and 41.2% exhibit interest in selling fruits straight from the farm to wholesalers.