Plastic bag keeps perishable produce fresh for weeks

Agriculture technology firm Amiran has introduced a post-harvest technology that prolongs the life of farm produce into the Kenyan market, aiming to resolve one of farmers’ headaches.

The polythene technology keeps fruit such as bananas and vegetables fresh by up to one month, promising to change the fortunes of millions of small farmers by cutting losses. It also gives room for better bargains, which would turn into increased earnings.

Kenyan farmers lose billions of shillings worth of fresh produce every year due to preservation difficulties after harvest. 

“It looks like any other polythene material, but this is no ordinary plastic bag. It is special, and in a way revolutionary, because it changes the way farmers store their produce and saves them money,” said Omry Karplus, the Amiran Kenya field operations manager.

The Amiran Active Bag keeps vegetables, meat, poultry, fish and dairy products fresh for up to one month.

Mr Karplus said the technology is targeting small-scale farmers who are the hardest hit when produce rot fast either in the farms or in stores, exposing them to middlemen who then take the goods for a song.

“With this technology, farm produce can retain that freshly picked flavour for a longer period of time helping farmers to take control of their prices,” he said. 

The bags are available in different sizes of 0.5kg to 20kgs and cost as low as Sh48 depending on size. Amiran reckons the bags offer value for money because they can be re-used up to four times.

The technology is chemical-free and functions by controlling gaseous exchange through a unique system, says the firm.

“It provides optimal levels of oxygen, carbon dioxide, ethylene and more to its contents,” Mr Omry said, adding the firm has subjected the product to a series of tests before launching.

Because different products require different storage temperatures to retain freshness, flavour and appearance, Amiran has designed the polythenes with different levels of porosity.

Mr Karplus says bananas, for instance, require cooler temperatures of 14 degrees Celsius while tomatoes, onions, spinach, capsicum, cucumber, carrots cabbage eggplants, kale, coriander and squash can stay fresh at much higher temperatures and can, therefore, be stored and placed under the shade or indoors.