Post-harvest losses of fish in developing countries.

As the world population grows, increasing food supply becomes an evermore urgent priority. One vital aspect is the reduction of food loss after harvesting. For fish and seafood, being perishable, the situation is more crucial and the reduction in quantity and/or quality is enormous and difficult to estimate. The effort to reduce these after harvest losses must begin with a quantitative assessment of the problem. The low accuracy of loss survey techniques and limitation of extrapolating means stands against reliable economic estimation in undeveloped countries where greater and more effective losses exist. In the present paper, post-harvest losses were assessed with special emphasis on the following topics: Cultural and socioeconomic aspects including traditional food conservation; economic factors for food conservation and cost-benefit; assessment of the effect of globalization and liberalization of food markets and the fish trade in artisanal fisheries. Strategies for loss reduction included estimation of loss, education and training for individuals and the organizations actively involved in post-harvest food conservation.