HARVESTING
Most grains have a single annual harvesting season, although
in bimodal rainfall areas there may be two harvests of maize
or rice (e.g., Ghana and Uganda). African producers harvest
grain crops once the grain reaches physiological maturity
(moisture content is 20–30 percent). At this stage the grain
is very susceptible to pest attacks. Also, unseasonal rains
at this stage can dampen the crop, resulting in mold growth
and the associated risk of afl atoxin or other mycotoxin contamination.
Weather conditions at the time of harvest are a
critical factor infl uencing PHL. More unstable weather conditions
due to climate change, leading to damper or cloudier
conditions, may therefore increase PHL. However, this appears
to be undocumented. In most part of SSA, harvesting
is traditionally the work of men; however, with the rise in
single-headed households, the burden between men and
women is increasingly shared.
Harvesting by hand is the traditional method used by small
producers in Africa. The relatively very few large-scale
farmers may use machines to harvest their crop. No data
show any difference in PHL between hand and mechanical
harvesting for SSA. In principle, hand harvesting is likely to