Relevant Experience:
- B.Sc. in Agriculture preferably with Masters or Ph.D. degree
- Ten years professional work experience of orchard management and harvesting
- At least five years experience of training design and delivery
- Excellent writing and communication skills in Urdu and English
Job Description:
Mango harvesting and post-harvest management not only determine mango quality and in turn competitiveness in the international market but also better profits and greater foreign exchange earnings for farmers and exporters. Due to changing demand of international markets and increasing share of supermarkets, it is high time for Pakistan to increase quality and quantity of mangoes by utilizing improved harvesting techniques and taking measures to reduce post-harvest losses.
Trade sources estimate between 25 to 30 percent of total mango harvest volume suffers post-harvest fruit loss. Improper harvesting methods and poor post-harvest handling at farm level contribute significantly in such losses. Rough harvesting practices like hitting with sticks and then free fall to ground is very common which imparts significant damage to the fruit. Sap exudation from the cut stem is another serious problem. Likewise, proper harvest maturity is not determined and market is dumped with wide range of fruit maturity, from over-ripened to semi-ripened. Improper grading and packaging is another issue which requires due attention.
This state of affairs can be improved by education and training of the harvesters, extension workers, packers and farm managers on proper harvest maturity indices, harvesting techniques, especially using the mechanical clippers, stem removal and de-sapping.
In this background,our Project has arranged six one-day training workshops in four mango districts of Sindh and Punjab in May and June respectively on mango harvesting and post-harvest handling to enhance the capacity of mango farmers by educating and sensitizing the growers and extension workers on this critical aspect of mango value chain and to develop their expertise in line with modern and advanced harvesting and post harvest practices. The workshops would be conducted in four mango orchards preferably, with Project signatories of GlobalGAP / Infrastructure Up-gradation Agreement, using the delivery methods like practical demonstration, multimedia presentation, group discussion, video clips, and experience sharing. For these training workshops, Project seeks the services of a consultant to work as Training of Mango Harvesting and Pre-harvest Handling
The objective of this consultancy is to increase mango yield and quality by increasing the capacity of mango farmers, orchard managers, and extension workers by imparting them with concepts, techniques, and skills of pre-harvest orchard management and mango harvesting in six training workshops, each of one day.
Tasks Related to Accomplishing the Scope of Work’s Objectives. The Consultant(s) shall use his/her education, experience, and additional understanding above to accomplish the following:
a) To peruse and review the available Firms booklet and poster on the subject matter to chalk out the concepts and practices to be delivered to farmers and farm managers.
b) Develop a power point presentation, encompassing all aspects of the mango harvesting. Power point presentation must be in Urdu, embedded with video clips and pictures, for the proper delivery of training.
c) Develop group exercises for practical demonstration of harvesting techniques in mango orchard(s).
d) Deliver six, one day training workshops in Punjab and Sindh.
Under this consultancy, the consultant will be responsible to perform all of the tasks and activities, clearly mentioned in this document and to address through trainings and materials the following topics:
- Pre-harvest management of mango orchard
- Orchard preparation for harvesting
- Maturity indices, and use of technology
- Harvesting methods
- Temporary handling of mangoes in field and transportation of mangoes to packhoue
A Trainer - Mango Harvesting and Post-harvest Handling Consultant will provide additional training to farmers on mango harvest and post-harvest techniques during sessions of the training. The Trainer - Mango Harvesting and Post-harvest Handling Consultant will address the following topics in his/her training sessions:
- De-sapping of mangoes
- Processing of mangoes on processing line
- Grading of mangoes and packaging
- Ethylene treatment
- Blast chilling and cold storage requirements & methods
- Palletizing and loading
Deliverables. The substance of findings and recommendations with respect to the above mentioned tasks shall be delivered by Consultant(s) in the following forms:
a) A PowerPoint presentation embedded with video clips and photographs
b) Training delivery in six, one day training workshops as resource person on the topic of pre-harvest orchard management and mango harvesting
c) A written report on the standard report format of the Project