Fish drying
Fishing communities in Cameroon, Cabo Verde and Malawi are benefiting from solar drying and solar-powered storage systems to better preserve fish. New technologies are enabling fish processors to deliver higher quality products, whilst boosting sustainable incomes and minimising environmental damage.
A new design of ‘solar tent’ fish dryer which significantly reduces the number of fish that are spoiled during the drying process is being tested by Lake Malawi fish processors. Currently, scientists estimate that for every 10 fish caught in Lake Malawi, four are spoiled during traditional drying processes by moisture or contamination from dust, insects or animals. With a wooden frame covered in thick, clear polythene sheeting, the solar dryer looks much like a shade house used to grow crops.
Researchers from the University of Malawi and the Department of Fisheries are working at five sites on Lake Malawi to improve fish processing over a 30 month period. The new design allows fish processers to produce top quality dried fish that can be sold in supermarkets, thereby earning higher prices. Pelina Bande, a fish processor from Cape Maclear, is one of the first to try the new design. “It’s easy to use,” she says, “because it’s inside the shade as compared to mine in the open sun, and I’m able to turn the fish without problems.”
Once the tent is in regular use, the research team will be able to learn whether using tents instead of open-air drying makes financial sense to processors, and what size of tent gives the biggest profit. Developing a business model that makes the tents affordable and profitable for processors and other entrepreneurs is another key focus of the project. The work, which continues until April 2017, is being supported by the Cultivate Africa’s Future Fund, an initiative jointly funded by Canada’s International Development Research Centre and the Australian Centre for International Agriculture Research.
In Limbe, southwest Cameroon, over 2,000 fishermen and women are using solar-powered fish-drying ovens and refrigerators to preserve fresh fish. In 2015, seven fishing associations in Batoke and Idenau villages were each offered two solar-powered ovens and 30 refrigerators by the consultancy company, African Resource Group-Cameroon, working in collaboration with local councils.
Previously, regular power outages had been responsible for large-scale losses during fish curing processes. Use of the solar-powered technology, however, has allowed many to increase their income, from less than €38 a day to €60. The use of solar power has also reduced health risks associated with fish smoking and helped to prevent the destruction of coastal mangroves, a traditional source of firewood for fish smoking. The fish preservation technologies are part of a project to provide reliable and affordable electricity to about 4,000 households and more than 2,000 people in the fish trade in order to boost opportunities for sustainable income in coastal villages.
In Cabo Verde, an EU-funded solar power project is changing lives in the fishing village of Monte Trigo on Santo Antão Island. A photovoltaic power station launched in 2012 provides continuous electricity to homes and community institutions. In addition, surplus energy is used to make ice and is sold to local fishermen. In May 2016, ice production reached 1 t and represented 5% of total solar power used. Fishing is the most important economic activity for the island; previously, the fishermen had a 5 hour journey by boat to buy ice in the capital city Praia. The solar ice house has improved work conditions and profits for the villagers.
