Extending Cassava Root Market Life in Liberia with Improved Postharvest Practices

Cassava is the second most important food crop in Liberia, comprising approximately 20% of the total caloric food intake by the Liberian population. Most farmers do not follow proper postharvest care practices for cassava, which results in rapid deterioration of the roots after harvest. Improved postharvest practices were introduced to significantly extend the market life and quality of cassava roots. Paraffin waxing and individual shrink film wrapping of freshly harvested roots were the two postharvest treatments that provided the longest extension of cassava market life. Paraffin waxed roots remained nearly free of decay after 2 weeks of partially air-conditioned/ambient temperature storage. Root weight loss ranged between 3% to 5% after 2 weeks and taste panel evaluations of the waxed cassava indicated that the vast majority of the roots were good to excellent in flavor. Individual shrink-wrapped roots (Bemis Clysar HPGF 100 gauge film) remained nearly free of decay after 1 week of partially air-conditioned/ambient temperature storage. However, approximately one-third of the roots decayed during the second week of storage. Individual root weight loss of the non-decayed, shrink-wrapped roots was only 1% to 2% after 2 weeks of storage and taste panel evaluations indicated the roots were good to excellent in flavor. Non-treated control roots suffered nearly total decay after 7–10 days of ambient temperature storage, with average weight loss ranging from 25% to 30%. The utilization of paraffin waxing for fresh cassava roots is a simple, affordable, and very effective postharvest treatment applicable to the vast majority of limited-resource farmers in Liberia without access to electricity or refrigerated storage.