In 2019, Ethiopia's annual estimated postharvest losses were 1,261,966 tonnes for maize, 614,474 tonnes for wheat, 475,401 tonnes for teff, 456,992 tonnes for sorghum. The highest and lowest estimated postharvest loss percentages are 20.0% for maize and 2.2% for oats. The costliest estimated postharvest losses in USD are for teff: over 404 million USD, which corresponds to 1.3% of national agricultural GDP.
Within the value chain the majority of loss is estimated to be happening at household-level storage for maize, at household-level storage for wheat, at harvesting/field drying for teff, at harvesting/field drying for sorghum. Within Ethiopia, the highest postharvest losses in tonnes occur for maize in Oromia, for wheat in Oromia, for teff in Oromia, for sorghum in Oromia. Regarding the nutritional losses, the estimated maize grain lost postharvest could have met the annual energy (kcal) dietary requirements of 5,375,862 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 | Wheat | Teff | Sorghum | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Production quantity in tonnes | 6,317,174 tonnes | 4,343,027 tonnes | 3,778,089 tonnes | 3,652,267 tonnes |
| Loss % | 20.0% | 14.1% | 12.6% | 12.5% |
| Losses in tonnes | 1,261,966 tonnes | 614,474 tonnes | 475,401 tonnes | 456,992 tonnes |
| Financial value | > 392 million USD | > 352 million USD | > 404 million USD | > 156 million USD |
| % of national agricultural GDP | 1.2% | 1.1% | 1.3% | 0.5% |
| # of people whose annual energy (kcal) requirements could have been met by the lost crop | 5,375,862 people | – | – | 1,823,059 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 ›