This project was mainly focused on post-harvest, pre-cooling and cold storage of agricultural produce targeted for the beneficial of farmers in remote Papua New Guinea. The report focuses on the role of agriculture in the upbringing of a nation’s economy and the need for a sustainable methodology to increase the overall quantity and quality of the produce.
The report also details the crops grown in the target area and the need for cold chain and pre-cooling in Papua New Guinea. It includes pre-cooling methodologies preferred according to the crops grown. The report also dealt with the Black Stump products such as Solar Ice Makers and Solar Chillers. The solar Ice makers are preferred for leafy vegetables and Solar Chillers for root crops. Potential target segments were also analysed and a market study for the targeted Papua New Guinea was conducted. A business model was suggested for the Fresh Produce Aggregators and a detailed financial analysis comparing the cost structures of an ordinary diesel equipment and Black Stump’s products were done to show the profit nature of the suggested products.
“From the analysis, the revenue gained from Black Stump’s methodology was found to be two times than that of the conventional diesel equipment.”
In conclusion the project found that agriculture plays a pivotal role in developing the economy of a country. In the targeted area, pre-cooling methodology were either absent or obsolete. Efficient pre-cooling methodology helps in increasing the quality of the produce and minimising the stock loss by over 35% and thereby increasing the revenue two times than that gained using existing techniques.