A Pest-free Cocoon for Crops

February 3, 2012

The GrainPro Cocoon As much as 50% of every grain harvest and 100% of every pulse harvest is lost to pests and mold, Navarro tells ISRAEL21c. Subsistence farmers in developing countries tend to store their crops in primitive baskets or bags, which are not effective in keeping hungry bugs and micro-contaminants out. “We are trying to help them save crops for the near future, not 50 years later,” he says. “People put their crops in baskets assuming that nothing will happen. They come to the market with them and see a large part is consumed by insects or mold.”

In Israel, the problem has another dimension. Since Jewish law prohibits eating insects, farmers are eager to bring their produce to market as bug-free as possible, but without harmful pesticides.

Professor Shlomo Navarro Navarro's Cocoons are good for humid and hot climates where farmers have the toughest time storing grains. “The system of hermetic storage is a very simple method, assuming the farmer is able to dry the commodity immediately and then put it inside the cocoon and protect it from mold developing.” Inside, without air, no animal form will live—even if eggs are deposited with the grains.

From an environmental point of view, producing food with high losses is extremely wasteful and carbon intensive as well. The straightforward, cost-effective solution developed by Navarro gives farmers crop security with no harmful side effects. For more information: www.grainpro.com, [email protected]

Source: Excerpts of an article by Karin Kloosterman, www.israel21c.org