In 2012, Ethiopia's annual estimated postharvest losses were 1,136,883 tonnes for maize, 498,285 tonnes for sorghum, 434,908 tonnes for teff, 417,280 tonnes for wheat. The highest and lowest estimated postharvest loss percentages are 17.7% for maize and 2.1% for oats. The costliest estimated postharvest losses in USD are for maize: over 319 million USD, which corresponds to 1.7% of national agricultural GDP.
Within the value chain the majority of loss is estimated to be happening at harvesting/field drying for maize, at harvesting/field drying for sorghum, at harvesting/field drying for teff, at household-level storage for wheat. Within Ethiopia, the highest postharvest losses in tonnes occur for maize in Oromia, for sorghum in Oromia, for teff in Oromia, for wheat in Oromia. Regarding the nutritional losses, the estimated maize grain lost postharvest could have met the annual energy (kcal) dietary requirements of 4,843,023 people.
To view the list of studies used to estimate these losses, please see the References tab.
Top 4 crops with the highest production quantity in tonnes.
| Maize | Sorghum | Teff | Wheat | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Production quantity in tonnes | 6,432,601 tonnes | 3,983,772 tonnes | 3,528,177 tonnes | 2,939,253 tonnes |
| Loss % | 17.7% | 12.5% | 12.3% | 14.2% |
| Losses in tonnes | 1,136,883 tonnes | 498,285 tonnes | 434,908 tonnes | 417,280 tonnes |
| Financial value | > 319 million USD | > 152 million USD | > 289 million USD | > 165 million USD |
| % of national agricultural GDP | 1.7% | 0.8% | 1.5% | 0.9% |
| # of people whose annual energy (kcal) requirements could have been met by the lost crop | 4,843,023 people | 1,987,787 people | – | – |
See full postharvest losses data tables with loss percentage › | losses in tonnes › | losses in USD › | financial impact › | nutritional losses ›
See full value chain data table with estimated losses in percentage › | tonnes › | USD ›