ICAR Research Data Repository for Knowledge Management
Storing grain in the desert
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View Archive Info| Field | Value | |
| Title |
Storing grain in the desert
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| Creator |
Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation
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| Description |
Some of the world's poorest regions may be the best natural storehouses for grain, according to a three-year study carried out by Israel's Valcani Institute for Agricultural Research, in cooperation with the Insect Infestation Laboratory in Savannah, Georgia, USA. The study describes several ways of protecting grain from insects and mould without using chemicals. One technique is to blow cold night air into the storehouses. In desert areas, in the winter months, the air is dry and the temperature is below zero centigrade at night. Another technique, Inspired by the underground storage methods of the Bedouin, involves pumping carbon dioxide into the storehouses to suffocate the pests. The Bedouin dig a pit at the top of a hillock in a desert area; it is dry in the summer and has good runoff to keep out moisture from the winter rains. The grain is placed inside and covered with straw and loess, a fine coil that becomes impermeable to water vvhon it gets wet, forming a hermetic seal. As insects and mould develop, their respiration uses up the oxygen, replacing it with carbon dioxide. The lack of oxygen eventually kills the pests. Some of the world's poorest regions may be the best natural storehouses for grain, according to a three-year study carried out by Israel's Valcani Institute for Agricultural Research, in cooperation with the Insect Infestation Laboratory in... |
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| Date |
1986
2014-10-02T13:13:05Z 2014-10-02T13:13:05Z |
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| Type |
News Item
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| Identifier |
CTA. 1986. Storing grain in the desert. Spore 1. CTA, Wageningen, The Netherlands.
1011-0054 https://hdl.handle.net/10568/44431 |
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| Language |
en
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Spore
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| Rights |
Open Access
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| Publisher |
Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation
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| Source |
Spore
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