REGIONAL PROJECT FOR INLAND FISHERIES PLANNING, DEVELOPMENT ANDMANAGEMENT IN EA-STERN/CENTRAL/SOUTHERN AFRICA (I.F.I.P.)

IFIP PROJET

RAF/87/099-WP/06/90 (En) November 1990

Improved method for smoking fish in the Kigomaregion of Lake Tanganyika, Tanzania

Ethiopia

Kenya

Tanzania

Mozambique

Zimbabwe

Malawi

55--5 ;55 5- 5555;

=5

Zambia

Zaire

Burundi

Rwanda

Uganda

UNITED NATIONS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME

FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS

FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONSUNITED NATIONS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME

Bujumbura, November 1990

RAF/87/099-WP/06/90 (En) November 1990

Improved method for smoking fish in the Kigomaregion of Lake Tanganyika, Tanzania

by

Nfamara J. DamphaUN Volunteer, Fish Processing Technologist

IFIP Project

4/..swegaewoomoi

UNDP/FAO Regional Project RAF/87/099-WP/06/90 (En)for Inland Fisheries PlanningDevelopment and Management inEastern/Central/Southern Africa

The conclusions and recommendations given in thisand other reports in the IFIP project series arethose considered appropriate at the time ofpreparation. They may be modified in the light offurther knowledge gained at subsequent stages ofthe Project. The designations employed and thepresentation of material in this publication do notimply the expression of any opinion on the part ofFAO or UNDP concerning the legal status of anycountry, territory, city or area, or concerning thedetermination of its frontiers or boundaries.

PREFACE

The IFIP project started in January 1989 with the main objective ofpromoting a more effective and rational exploitation of the fisheriesresources of major water bodies of Eastern, Central and Southern Africa. Theproject is executed by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the UnitedNations (FAO), and funded by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)for a duration of four years.

There are eleven countries and three intergovernmental organisationsparticipating in the project: Burundi, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique,Uganda, Rwanda, Tanzania, Zambia, Zaire, Zimbabwe, The Communaute. Economiquedes Pays des Grands Lacs (CEPGL), The Preferential Trade Area for Eastern andSouthern African States (PTA) and the Southern African DevelopmentCoordination Conference (SADCC).

The immediate objectives of the project are: (i) to strengthen regionalcollaboration for the rational development and management of inland fisheries,particularly with respect to shared water bodies; (ii) to provide advisoryservices and assist Governments in sectoral and project planning; (iii) tostrengthen technical capabilities through training; and (iv) to establish aregional information base.

Traditional fish processors use pit ovens to smoke fish in the Kigomaregion of Lake Tanganyika. The smoked product is of low quality and thesmoking process consumes a lot of fuelwood.

The paper reviews the attempts made by the FAO/Netherlands project inKigoma in collaboration with the IFIP project, to improve the smoking of fishby introducing the chorkor smoker to the processors. It goes on to describethe chorkor smoker and how fish processing technology extension operationsshould be structured to meet the needs of the fishing community.

IFIP PROJECTFAO

B.P 1250BUJUMBURABURUNDI

Telex : FOODAGRI BDI 5092 Tel. 2.4328

IFIP PUBLICATIONS

Publications of the IFIP project are issued in two series:

A series of technical documents (RAF/87/099-TD) related to meetings,missions and research organized by the project.

A series of working papers (RAF/87/099-WP) related to more specificfield and thematic investigations conducted in the framework of the project.

For both series, reference is further made to the document number (06),the year of publication (90) and the language in which the document is issued:English (En) or French (Fr).

For bibliographic purposes this documentshould be cited as follows:

Dampha N. J. Improved method for smoking fish in the Kigoma region1990 of Lake Tanganyika, Tanzania. UNDP/FAO Regional

Project for Inland Fisheries Planning (IFIP),RAF/87/099-WP/06/90 (EN): 23p.

iv

TABLE OF CONTENTS Page

1 INTRODUCTION 1

1.1 The source and the main fishing methods used in the Kigomaregion of Lake Tanganyika, Tanzania

PROJECT GCP/URT/066/NET 2

TRADITIONAL SMOKING OF FISH 3

3.1 The traditional oven 3

3.2 Smoking technique 3

THE CHORKOR SMOKER 4

4.1 Introduction 4

4.2 How to construct the chorkor smoker 5

4.3 Materials 5

4.4 Procedure 5

4.5 Key points of design 6

TRAYS 6

5.1 Procedure 6

5.2 Key points of design 6

PREPARATION OF FISH FOR SMOKING 7

6.1 The smoking 7

FISH SMOKING DEMONSTRATIONS WITH THE TRADITIONAL AND THE CHORKORSMOKERS 8

7.1 Fish smoking demonstrations with the traditional oven . 8

7.2 Chorkor oven for the Women group in Kibirizi village . 9

7.3 Fish smoking demonstrations with the Chorkor oven 10

PROCESSING LOSSES AND CONSTRAINTS 10

EXTENSION WORK FOR THE CHORKOR SMOKER 11

RECOMMENDED APPROACH IN TRANSFERING NEW FISH PROCESSING TECHNOLOGY 14

CONCLUSION 15

FIGURES 16

PHOTOGRAPHS 19

REFERENCES 23

List of IFIP publications 24

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 The source and the main fishing methods used in the Kiqoma region ofTanzania, on Lake Tanganyika.

The fisheries resources can be separated into two parts: the pelagicand demersal fisheries. The former is estimated to contribute about 80percent of the total annual production whereas the demersal sector is

estimated to account for only 20 percent (which would amount to some 5,000tons per year at present production levels (Schack V. O. F, 1985)).

The category of pelagic fish comprises the following six species:

two clupeids (Limnothrissa miodon), or "lumpo" in localterminology, and Stolothrissa tanqanicae, or "dagaa"), and

four predators (Lates maria, or "sangala"; L. microlepis, or"nouzi"; L. anqustifrons, or "gomba"; and Luciolates,stappersii,or "mikebuka").

Within the group of pelagic species the catches of Lates and Luciolatesare estimated to amount to 10 percent and 40 percent respectively. Theclupeid species are believed to account for the other half, which wouldamount to some 10,000 tons per year.

The pelagic fishery in the Kigoma region is entirely a night fisheryand its intensity varies with the lunar periods during a given month. Themost productive fishing areas are within 4 miles off shore. The main fishingmethods presently employed in the pelagic sector are lift-netting,lusenga/scoop-netting and purse seining. Whereas the former two methods areexclusively village based and concentrated inside a limit of 1-2 miles offshore, the purse seine fishery is only operated within a radius of 10 milesout of Kigoma town at present.

The liftnet fishery uses catamaran or trimaran wooden boats each about7 m in length. The net size varies between 10-12 m and 15-17 m in diameterand 15-20 m in depth depending on the number of boats used. The main means ofpropulsion are by paddles with some fishermen using sails during goodweather. Outboard engines are only occasionally used, and then in villagesnear Kigoma. Up to 4-6 pressure lamps per fishing unit are used forattracting fish. The lusenga/scoopnet fishery uses a single hull or smallwooden boat of up to 4-5 m in length. It is powered exclusively by paddlesand usually equipped with 2 kerosine pressure lamps. The Kigoma based purseseine fishery comprises three fishing vessels each equiped with one net boatand up to 5 light boats using 4 kerosine pressure lamps each.

In contrast, the demersal fishery sector is entirely artisanal andvillage based, using hook and line and gillnetting as its main fishingmethods. It would appear that this type of fishing is much more common invillages south of Kigoma, particulary in those which are situated in thevicinity of some of the many muddy and turbid river systems which are feedingthe Lake; the Malagarasi, Rufulu, and Ifume Rivers (Shack V. O. F., 1985).The artisanal village based fishery is by far the largest sector contributing

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almost the entire portion of the total estimated annual production ofslightly more than 25,000 tons.

In contrast to the Kigoma based semi-commercial fishery, ever thelargest of the small-scale fishery sectors can only be reached by watertransport and has no direct links, either by road or railways with theinterior Tanzanian markets. This holds true for all major fishing communitieswith the exception of those situated in the immediate vicinity of Kigoma,such as Kibirizi, Bangwe, Ujiji, Kaseka, Mwakisega and Ilajala. This isolatedsituation justifies the need to improve the existing traditional practices ofpreserving fish in order to get a final product which would be a viableproduct worth transporting to market.

2. PROJECT GCP/URT/066/NET

A major fishery development activity has been going on since 1983around Kigoma on lake Tanganyika, where an FAO/Netherlands project offersintegrated technical assistance and credit to the artisanal fishermen. Thesecond phase of the project ended in December 1989. The short term objectivesof the project are to provide technical assistance and loans in kind toartisanal fishermen in order to increase fishing productivity throughimprovement of fish catching methods, processing as well as marketing andtransport arrangements for fish products.

The project has registered success in extending assistance to fishermenin gear design, net construction and fishing (projects) operations. Theproject provided a large trimaran with a net 85 m long and 24 m deep, threelarge boats, 6800 cp columbus lamps (normal liftnet operate with 2100 cppressure lamps) and an outboard engine. The engine is powered by diesel (longshaft system). While on fishing trials the liftnet/trimaran recordedconsiderable savings in fuel consumption with an increase in catch. Trainingand demonstration of this fishing method started in early 1989 in villagesnorth of Lake Tanganyika and later extended to the southern part of the Lake.

The project is carrying out training programmes on fish processing.With the aid of UWT (Umoja Wa Wanawake Tanzania) women groups of threevillages in the northern side of lake Tanganyika were identified as

prospective trainees in improved drying and smoking techniques. There aresome drying racks distributed to fishing villages by the project to improvefish drying techniques.

The second phase of the project extended credit facilities toindividuals and by November 1989 a total of 243 individuals had benefittedfrom the project revolving loan scheme. A Women Development Officer has beenrecruited by the project and her task is to get the women in the fishingvillages engaged in income generating activities like fish processing,marketing, vegetable gardening etc. Women from certain villages along thelake have already organized themselves in groups and already benefit fromloans provided by the project.

3. TRADITIONAL SMOKING OF FISH

3.1. The traditional oven

The traditional oven is a pit of about 30 cm deep dug by thetraditional processor before starting to smoke fish. It could be permanent ortemporary. The ovens are mostly located in the processors yard to enable theprocessor, generally women, to do other household duties whilst smoking.There is no special technique involved in the digging of the pit nor anyfinancial cost to the processor.

3.2 Smoking technique

Luciolates staperssi, or "mikebuka" in local terminology, is thespecies most commonly used for smoking. There are several reasons: First ofall, it is a medium-sized species of around 30-35 cm in length and a maximumbody width of 8-10 cm. Mikebuka is therefore more suitable for smoking thanbigger size Lates and other fish belonging to the Haplochromis family.Secondly, it has the advantage of being rather uniform in size, a fact whichgreatly facilitates shift smoking.

The smoking process itself takes place just above the pit. Thickbranches of firewood are placed inside the pit and set alight. The fish isusually smoked whole with neither the gills nor intestines removed beforehand. The tail fin of the fish is slid through the gills thereby almostforming a circle; the bent fish is then placed one by one on a wooden stickwhich in turn is put across the pit. A maximum of 60-80 fish, i.e. 8-9wooden sticks placed parallel to each other and holding 8-10 fish each, aresmoked in this way in one shift.

Depending on the smoking time and the intended market, the shelf lifeof smoked mikebuka is estimated to be about 2 weeks during the dry season andless during the rainy season. Another factor greatly affecting the quality ofthe final product is the quality of firewood used. It would appear that notall the villages along the lake shore in the Kigoma region have sufficientquantities of firewood, and that there are obvious natural limitations as tohow far the traditional smoking of fish could be further expanded withoutfuel saving smoking techniques.

The shortcomings and deficiencies inherent in this type of smoking areas follows:

(a) the quality of the final product is considered to be of a

relatively low standard because in some villages not enoughfirewood is available; this results in:

the inefficient use of available firewood resources: a

significant amount of heat and smoke dissipates from thefire pit without-even touching the fish;

generally too short a time for the fish to be properlysmoked;

(b) poor quality because the fish are not prepared beforehand;

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(c) short shelf life of the product combined with the infrequent andvery irregular visits by boatof only a few fish traders has theeffect that the artisanal fishing community is presently not ina position to derive the maximum possible benefits from this typeof processing, both in terms of economic returns and marketpenetrations outside Kigoma.

4. THE CHORKOR SMOKER

4.1. Introduction

The Chorkor smoker evolved from the traditional cylindrical WestAfrican oven made from packed clay mud. This form is still widely used, butit is extremely inefficient. The Ivory Coast kiln and the Watanabe oven(Watanabe, 1975) were the best of the other improved ovens in the 1970s, butthey never caught on mainly due to high cost of construction and maintenance.The women of Chorkor Ghana, assisted by a small FAO project and the FoodResearch Institute of Accra, started using stackable trays on their

traditional smoking ovens. With support from the Voluntary Fund of thedecade for Women UNICEF and FAO the Chorkor fish smoking method spread widelyto other parts of West Africa.

The ovens could be made of clay, mud, or burnt bricks which areavailable almost everywhere, and construction could be done by local masonsand carpenters in fishing villages. The materials for the trays are usuallyeasy to obtain.

The advantages of tha Chorkor smoker are:

The Chorkor system has proven to be in keeping with the fishsmoking habits of African women so no major adoptation or re-education is necessary;

low construction cost in comparison to earlier improved smokingtechniques;

long life and low maintenance if protected from the rain and thesmoking trays are looked after;

large capacity which depends on the number of trays used;

high quality and uniformity of product due to greater retentionof heat and circulation of smoke (reduced smoking time);

no inhaling of smoke or burning of fingers during smoking;

easy to operate (no smoke in eyes; fire boxes and trays are allvery accessible);

greatly reduced consumption of fuel (very little waste of heatand smoke).

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4.2. How to construct the Chorkor smoker

The ovens are rectangular, about twice as long as wide, with stoke holesin front depending on the number of chambers. Preferably there is a

foundation sunk in the ground and a dividing wall in the middle, both beingrecent improvements on earlier models.

The advantages of a middle wall:

gives added strength to the oven;

protects the median cross piece of the bottom tray from burning;

gives greater support to the loaded trays;

allows for smoking of small quantity of fish over just onechamber, using less wood.

4.3. Materials

There are four appropriate approaches for construction of smokingovens:

clay mud, packed and shaped by hand;

packed clay mud faced with cement (half bag);

clay mud blocks (sun-dried or baked);

cement blocks or burnt bricks with motar and with well washedsand.

4.4. Procedure

the ground is cleared and leveled; the outline of the oven wallis drawn; a trench is dug for the foundation depending on thestrength of the ground of the locality;

the walls are constructed (the various stages depending on thebuilding materiels: for clay mud the lower half is packed andallowed to dry before the top half is packed and squared). t

takes approximately 2 days for block construction and 3 days forpacked clay;

for the clay oven or mud oven the stoke holes are cut (with anysharpened strip of iron) in the front wall once it is dry;

for the cement oven, an arch is made with a piece of scrapplywood or what ever is available to make an- arch, and packedwith cement well-bounded to the blocks surrounding it;

(e) the last step is plastering (with clay or cement) after the ovenand stoke holes have dried.

4.5. Key points of design

the top of the oven must be square, level and flat so that thewooden-framed trays can rest flush on the walls;

the oven should be low: maximum 75 cm (for ease of stacking thetrays).

5. TRAYS

Idealy the frames for the trays should be constructed from hardwoodplanks which are strong, resistant to heat, moisture and insects. In praticehowever, softwoods are used almost exclusively because they are 2-4 timescheaper and the trays are also lighter.

18-20 wire nets of half inch to one inch mesh are required. The choiceof wire mesh depends on the type of fish to be smoked as bigger fish requirea stronger wire mesh. These normally come in rolls of 1 X 30 (yards ormetres): enough for 30 trays of one metre square. About 30 nails are requiredto frame a tray and batten down the wire net.

5.1. Procedure

The wire nets are cut to the size of the frames and attached to theunder side with small nails. Then the 1 cm (or half inch) battens are nailedto the bottom edges of the frame to hold the wire nets firmly in place.

The four cross pieces are nailed at the edges (normally with a sectionleft for the handle). This forms a complete tray of one metre square (thechoice of nails depends on the thickness of the wood).

Finally one tray should be covered with plywood to be used on top ofthe stack.

5.2. Key points of design

the trays must be square and fit together in order to form aproper "chimney";

the nets must be stretched in both directions across the bottomof the frames in order to support the fish;

the top plywood "lid" tray must fit securely to stop smoke fromescaping.

The frames will last a long time given proper care during operation andfrequent maintainance:

avoid burning the trays during smoking;

apply vegetable oil regularly to the wire nets;

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put under the shed to prevent sun and rain.

6 PREPARATION OF FISH FOR SMOKING

Except for larger fishes which are usually gutted before smoking, fishof small and medium size are smoked whole. The fish are washed in clean waterand carefully arranged on trays. Sometimes they are left to drip beforesmoking.

The trays filled with fish are stacked on top of each other upon theovens, resulting in a smoking chamber/chimney. Up to 15 trays may be used onone oven, although 10-12 trays are generally used depending on the amount offish to be smoked. Hardwood is used for the fire (particularly for thecooking phase) which produces higher temperatures. However, any type of woodused traditionally for fish smoking could be used e.g coconut husks, palmfronds, sawdust etc., that have been moistened to produce plenty of smoke.The local fish processors are generally familiar with the type of woodsuitable for fish smoking.

6.1. The smoking

Depending on the type of fish to smoke (species, thickness, etc.) andintended market, the smoking process can take anywhere from one hour to twodays. To "smoke-dry" the same fish, it will take many hours of smoking,mainly at lower temperatures. The latter method is by far the most common,especially in areas where transportation of processed fish to the markets isirregular.

The fish are turned and the orientation of the trays are changed 2-4times during the smoking cycle. The upper trays are placed closer to thefire, while the lower ones are placed on top. The fish should be left to coolbefore turning in order to avoid personal harm. After 2-5 hours of hotsmoking, the contents of 2 or 3 trays of partially smoked fish can becombined in one tray and smoked over a moderate fire. This is an importantstage from a preservation standpoint, and may last as long as 2-3 daysyielding a very dry product with a longer shelf life.

The fires are set in the fire pit of each chamber of the oven. Thus,the base of the fire is about 6 inches below ground level and the flame is15-20 inches below the first layer of fish. The fire is started with a smallamount of hardwood as this allows the fish to dry briefly under lowtemperatures. More hardwood is then added to produce more heat and smokewhich gives the fish a desirable colouration.

The fire is closely watched. As soon as it becomes too intense, somesticks of wood are removed or some water is splashed on the fire. Due to the."chimney" formed by the stacking of the trays on the oven (and covered at thetop), the heat and smoke constantly circulate inside. Thus, a high-quality,evenly smoked product is achieved with the minimum of fuel. Near the end ofthe smoking process, some processors add sugar cane to the fire to give thefish a yellowish-brown colour.

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7. FISH SMOKING DEMONSTRATIONS WITH THE TRADITIONAL AND THE CHORKORSMOKERS

In June 1990, the author was asked to travel to Kigoma to carry outfurther smoking demonstrations with the Chorkor oven and the traditional ovenin collaboration with the FAO project staff and the women group in Kibirizi.This was to determine the difference between the fuel consumption of theChorkor smoker and the traditional smoker. The mission coincided with thefull lunar cycle (when fishing is not carried out). Thus, due to the limitednumber of fish, it was only possible to carry out one simultaneousdemonstration.

7.1. Fish smoking demonstrations with the traditional oven

Before the demonstrations the women dug a pit of about 30 cm near thealready constructed Chorkor smoker in order to allow both demonstrations tobe carried out under the same climatic conditions. The doors of both thetraditional and the Chorkor ovens were facing the same direction.

In the Kigoma region like other areas around Lake Tanganyika, the mainfish species traditionally smoked is Luciolates starpperssi or Mikebuka. Thefish were prepared in the normal way by the women by passing the tail throughthe gills forming a circle. They arrange the fish on sticks by passing thestick through the middle of the circle with about 500 grammes of fish perstick. Wood was arranged in the hole and set alight. The sticks were thenarranged by laying them across the hole in pararells with the back of thefish facing the fire. In order to prevent more smoke escaping the women placesome leaves on the sides of the oven and also on top of the fish. Accordingto them, they usually use banana leaves or old currugated iron sheets tocover the sides of the oven and the top of the fish. Much heat is requiredduring the initial drying phase to retard spoilage of fish. However accordingto the women they indentify spoiled fish during the smoking process becausethe flesh falls off from the sticks after a few minutes of smoking.

After one hour's smoking it was evident that the fish was being burntrather than smoked as almost 60% of the smoke was not actually touching thefish. The sticks were then rotated with the ones at the extreme end of theoven placed in the front. During rotation of the sticks the fish are alsorearranged on the sticks with the belly facing the fire and any fish whichseems heavily burnt is removed, placed aside for further drying by the wind.As it was observed, a high concentration of heat is experienced at theextreme end of the oven where a large part of the smoke escapes.

This turning of the sticks while smoking with the traditional ovenresembles the rotation of trays during smoking with the Chorkor oven. Tocontrol the fire the women either splash water on the fire, close the openingto the oven with leaves or wet some saw dust and add it to the wood in orderto produce smoke instead of flames. In the Kigoma region fuel wood is soscarse that there is less choice in selecting the type of wood to be used forsmoking. The women fetch firewood at a distance and mostly they cut greenwood and bring it home to dry it in their compounds. These bundles could beseen in almost every compound around the lake area.

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Disadvantages of the traditional oven:

the fish is burnt rather than smoked, or only partially smoked;

energy is wasted: most heat and smoke passes through the sides of theoven;

it is labour intensive because of the constant watch on the fire andthe frequent rearrangement of the sticks;

health problems of the processor/smoker by inhalation of a lot ofsmoke, and possible burning of his/her fingers;

the capacity of the oven is very small: a large amount of fish wouldhave to be smoked in batches and the whole process would take a verylong time, the fish waiting to be smoked deteriorating in the meantime.

7.2. Chorkor oven for the Women group in Kibirizi village

The FAO project GCP/URT/066/NET in collaboration with the IFIP projectassisted the above women group in the construction of a two compartmentChorkor oven in May 1990. The selection of the site for oven construction wasdone by the women themselves. The area is near the Lake which facilitateseasy access to water for cleaning the fish prior to smoking. The constructionof the Chorkor oven with two smoking compartments took three days. The firsttwo days were spent laying bricks, the third day was spent plastering theoven with mud. It was left for an additional day to dry up.

Estimate of cost for the construction of a two compartment Chorkor oven in

May 1990 prices

2 US $ 1 = 196 T.shs

the Kigoma region, Tanzania

Item Costl

(T Shs)2

Material cost (mud blocks) for oven 200

Workmanship for carpenter and masoner 1500

1 metre wire net 350

Timber for tray of 1 metre square 300

Nails (kg) 250

1 sheet ceiling board 1000

Total 4,100

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During the construction mud bricks were used and, except brick laying,all the labour (i.e. the clearing of the site , mixing mud and drawing ofwater) was provided by the women themselves. The only labour cost during theconstruction of the oven was the work of the masoner and carpenter for thesmoking trays. The ovens are 1 m X 0.75 cm with fire pits of 0.45 cm.

7.3. Fish smoking demonstrations with the Chorkor oven

The smoking of fish with the Chorkor smoker was already introduced tothe women and they have been using the oven without supervision. The mainreason for these demonstrations was to further demonstrate to them the fuelefficiency of the Chorkor oven over the traditional oven by smoking with bothovens simultaneously.

The fish for smoking (Mikebuka) was washed and prepared the traditionalway for smoking by passing the tail fin through the gills. The fish was leftfor a few minutes to allow the water to drip off. The fish were then weighedon scales and arranged on the smoking trays. During the demonstrations foursmoking trays were used for 38 kg of fish.

16 kgs of firewood was weighed out in preparation for smoking. Fromthis some wood was put in the oven, lit and allowed to burn for about twentyminutes to warm the interior of the oven and to allow the initial flames tosubside. The fish were arranged on the smoking trays with the belly facingdownwards.

The trays were then placed on the ovens at 10.45 a.m. with the lasttray covered to prevent smoke escaping. As the fire died down more firewoodwas added.

The trays were rotated after one hours smoking with the trays on topbeing placed at the bottom. This allowed even smoking of the fish: there isusually more heat at the bottom of the oven than at the top. During thesecond rotation of the trays, the fish were left to cool before turning thefish (onto their backs). This is important because if the fish are turnedimmediately fingers may be burnt and some fish will be deformed because theflesh falls off. The next stage of the smoking was mainly colourarizationand was done with less fire.

It took 4 hours 15 minutes to smoke 38 kg of mikebuka using 14 kg offirewood. However, it should be noted that the fish smoked consist mainly ofjuvenile Luciolates and even large individuals are not very fatty. Accordingto the women there is a period when the mikebuka is very fatty. Smoking thesame amount of fish during this period would require more fuel than theresult obtained. After smoking the fish were left to dry and then re-weighedon the scales. The final product weighed 34 Kg, hence a loss.of 4 kg. Theactual smoking time could be less than recorded because of the time used inthe rotation of the trays and turning of the fish.

8. PROCESSING LOSSES AND CONSTRAINTS

In addition to helping the traditional processors keep up with thegreater yields of fish that need to be processed and marketed, improved

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technology must be applied to solve the great problem of post-harvest loss.No other types of food processing incurs such serious losses altough theextent of the problem is not yet knownl.

Three forms of post harvest loss do occur during the stage ofprocessing. The first type of loss occur when raw fish spoils due to the timelag between the actual time of catching, landing and processing the fish.Although the women processors check the freshness of the fish (by examiningthe gills, which should be red not white) sometimes the fish spoils duringthe processing or soon after smoking. A (semi) spoiled mikebuka that is beingsmoked falls off from the smoking sticks and the final product is of inferiorquality which breaks easily while packing or restacking the fish.

The second type of loss occurs when occasionally the sticks that holdthe fish across the fire pit break or catch fire which leads to an immediateloss of fish. The third and main loss is during storage of the smoked fishcaused by domestic animals, fungi and insects that infest the fish.

Overall the major constraint of the traditional processing sector isthe lack of adequate storage facilities. A great part of post harvest lossoccurs due to the fact that generally the smoked fish has to be storedsomewhere in the processors house, mostly uncovered and unprotected.Improving storage facilities could lead to a reduction of postharvest loss.

9. EXTENSION WORK FOR THE CHORKOR SMOKER

The Chorkor smoker can help in improving the working conditions and theoutput of processing women; it gives a smoked fish of higher quality andburns less fuel. However, before introduction, local socio-economic factorsmust be analysed and taken into account for example:

is fish processing is a predominant activity in the area and arewomen interested in its development;

are expected profits worth the expenses incurred in constructingthe smoker.

Inrespective of the objectives, the extension work will succeed only ifthe interest of the processing women is aroused. They will be especiallyinterested in arguments which explain how the smoker can solve their specificproblems. Therefore, it is imperative that the extension worker should havea good knowledge of the local environment. In addition it will provide withguidelines for the extension programme which, for example, should examine:

(a) Study of the local conditions:

catches, the regularity and quantity of fish landed;

Exact post-harvest loss assessment of fish is almost impossible inthe small-scale fisheries sector in Africa because most of the artisanalcatch is unregistered harvest caught by uncharted fishermen, and it passesthrough many hands on its way from harvest to consumption.

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the selling, demand, price fluctuations, transport facilities;

the importance of the fish processing sector: the number ofprocessing women, the interest in such an activity, its role inthe domestic economy;

stability of the fishing community.

(b) One should then endeavour to find out whether the use of the chorkorsmoker will entail fundamental changes on technical and social grounds aswell as with regard to management. (It has been noted that its introductionwill be more successful if it is closer to the traditional technique.) Thiscalls for a good knowledge of:

current technology;

work organization and production relations; the characteristicsof the processor, the quantity of paid labour, the distributionof profits, etc.

This information can be acquired

by consulting documents;

through observations and field trips

through interviews with those authorities in charge of thetraining and supervision of fishermen's communities and with thecommunities themselves;

(c) The target group

If you think that the introduction of the chorkor smoker could be aviable venture in local conditions and that the processing women will beinterested in improving their working pratice, you can then install a pilotsmoker and make a few trials before working out an extension plan.

It should be stressed once again that the success of the promotionactivity for the chorkor smoker will depend on the interest you will havearoused amongst the target group. The extension worker must be conversantwith the life of the processing women and be able "to stand in their shoes".In addition, a good knowledge of their social patterns will help you definethe mode of communication for the extension work.

As a result, it is essential to have a good grasp of the following:

age, level of education, family status, religion (taboos inrespect of fish smoking) ethnic group;main and complimentary economic activities;

scale of organization, groupings, etc.

main problems of processing women.

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These data can be gathered through:

consultation of documents;

fact-finding trips;

observations;

informal interview with local leaders and influencial fish

processors.

(d) Selecting the target group:

Now that you have gathered essential data on the fish processing womenyou must decide which women or groups of women you want to work with. You mayprefer to work with disadvantaged women whereas you will be more efficient ifthe focus is put on women who are involved in large scale production.

After selecting your target group you must think of the conditions onwhich the smoker can be offered; how you can make it attractive and whatinvestment the group can be asked to effect.

The assistance you can possibly give will depend on the policy andmeans of your organization and on currency availability.

A few possiblities are:

to offer individual credit to women (this was done in Kigoma,Tanzania);

to organize women into groups to apply for credit with banksestablished in the region (this was done in Ghana);

to provide incentives such as wire-netting, a few smoking traysor a bag of cement if they are prepared to pay for other inputs(this strategy was used in Sierra Leone, Gambia, Kigoma-Tanzania).

(e) Selecting the site

The following criteria may guide you in making a good choice of site:

the importance of smoking activities in the village, and fish

suPPlY;

accessiblity to the village by traders;

the presence of field workers;

the presence of women groupings with whom you can collaborate.

Extension methods

The most important methods for popularizing the Chorkor smoker aregroup methods such as group interviews, demonstration and discussionsfollowed by individual visits.

Individual visits:

In fishermen's communities, information is carried from mouth to mouthaccording to well defined channels. It is essential for an extension workerto be come acquainted with those communication channels and their source ofinformation. Try to indentify influential women in a community. Consult themfirst and then try to obtain their backing and participation. If they opt forthe Chorkor, other processing women will be more motivated to adopt it.

Group interview:

As a general rule, women belong to small informal groups made up ofmembers of their families, neighbours, marriage, etc. They can also belong togroupings or organisations of a formal nature, for example women's groupings,political organizations or credit associations. These groups and leaders playa predominant role in matter of communication and often influence theiropinions and decisions on certain issues. This is why it is quite useful toknow them better and organize meetings with them.

Demonstrations

In the first place, it is recommended you organize a demonstration forrepresentatives of processing women.

The objectives are:

to make the women acquinted with the Chorkor smoker;

to compare it with their own smoker; and

to discuss the characteristics of the smoker which they like theleast in relation to their traditional model.

It is advisable to form small groups of say 8 to 15 women for easierdiscussion. This will help the extension worker to determine the types ofchanges that might be necessary.

10. RECOMMENDED APPROACH IN TRANSFERING NEW FISH PROCESSING TECHNOLOGY

(a) trained extension personal should be recruited, who are willingto work under difficult conditions training fishermen/processorsin improved techniques of fish processing. These persons shouldbe considered the key to the improvement of fish processingactivities among the fisherfolk. They will:

14

15

identify where improved fish processing techniques arerequired;

improve on the existing traditional methods;

work out demonstrations to popularize any new techniquesconsidered suitable for introduction into fishingcommunities.

free communication between the extension workers and thefishermen/fish processors;

infrastructure and facilities should be introduced, as forexample:

improved transportation to facilitate speedy movement offish and supplies to and from the fish-landing sites;

appropriate support facilities to facilitate fishing, fishprocessing and distribution and repair and maintenance ofgear and craft;

improved market conditions to facilitate hygienic handling,processing and storage.

CONCLUSION

The whole problem of lack of development in the artisanal fishprocessing sector is further compounded by a sociological factor: thetraditional processors have been curing fish for centuries using the sametraditional methods. New ideas and new devices are often rejected or, atbest, only partially adopted. This has been the case with some of theinnovations introduced in the artisanal processing sector in most countriesin Africa.

It is not uncommon to see the broken and rusting remains of improvedsmoking ovens/dry racks which were built to demonstrate the benefits ofimproved technology but which were discarded by the fishing communities infavour of familiar, traditional equipment. These are tangible reminders thateducation must precede and accompany any efforts to improve conditions. Newequipment and methods must be thoroughly explained and presented to theprocessors as means of improving upon but not necessarily rejecting the oldones. Economic advantages of better equipment and techniques should beemphasized and ways to maintain equipment must be taught.

In the small-scale fisheries sector, there is only one way to reallykeep cost prices down. This is to respect long-established traditions of fishprocessing by individual families, a system in which the work done by familymembers is not renumerated. All methods of group processing (community ownedovens) in which the labour force has to be paid have so far proven nonviable, as shown by a number of fruitless attempts to do so (Collart A.,1986).

Figure 1: A chorkor smoker with two comporternents

Source: D'après Zinsou et Wentholt (1989)

EO

8

100 cm

1,1,_6_om,4

I

1

i

Figure 2: internal and external dimensions.

3 5cm

100cmel4 si

Figure 3: Openings for insertion and withdrawal of the firewood .

Source: D ' après Zinsou et Wentholt (1989)

Figure 4: The smoking tray

- 18-

Source: D après Zinsou et Wentholt (1989)

Figure 5: The trays should fit over each other.

Photo 1 : Arranging fish on the traditional smoke pit

- 20-

0011

Photo 2 : A trench of 15 to 20 cm deep

is dug for the foundation.

Photo 3 : Laying mud blocks for the walls

i.

Photo 4 : Preparing fish for smoking

- 21

ass11111.:

Photo 5 : Arranging fish on the smoking tray

- - W

,.4_.._

23

REFERENCES

Brownel, B. and Lopez, J. The Chorkor fish smoking method: A truely1985 appropriate technology. Paper presented at the FAO expert

consultation on fish technology in Africa, Lusaka, Zambia. 21-25January 1985

Collart A. Development planning for small-scale fisheries in West Africa:1986 practical technical and socio-economic aspects of fish production

and processing. IDAF/WP/7 (EN)

FAO A pratical guide to improved fish smoking in West Africa, 1983.

Maembe T.W. Problems related to introduction of new processing techniques1982 in the Lake Chad fisheries. Paper presented at the FAO expert

consultation on fish technology in Africa Cassablanca Morocco. 7-11 June 1982

Schack V.O.F. Fish handling and marketing in the Kigoma region of Lake1985 Tanganyika. Paper presented at the FAO expert consultation on

fish technology in Africa, Lusaka, Zambia. 21-25 january 1985

Van Hoof L. Small-scale fish production and marketing in Shenge, Sierra1986 Leone. IDAF/WP/12 (EN)

Zannou, H., Poulsen, K. B. and Zinsou, F. J. Techno-Economic studies of1988 improved ovens for fish smoking in Benin.

Zinsou J. and Wentholt W. A pratical guide to the construction and19989 introduction of the Chorkor smoker. IDAF/WP/24 (EN) April 1989.

24

LIST OF IFIP REPORTS - LISTE DES RAPPORTS PPEC

I. TECHNICAL DOCUMENTS / DOCUMENTS TECHNIQUES

Gréboval D., A. Bonzon, M. Giudicelli and E. Chondoma, Baseline Survey Report1989 (1987) on inland fisheries planning, development and management

in Eastern/Central/Southern Africa. UNDP/FAO Regional Project forInland Fisheries Planning (IFIP). RAF/87/099-TD/01/89 (En): 104p.

Gréboval D., A. Bonzon, M. Giudicelli and E. Chondoma, Rapport sur l'étude de1989 base (1987) sur la planification, le développement et

l'aménagement des pêches continentales en Afrique Orientale/Centrale/Australe. Projet Regional PNUD/FAO pour la Planificationdes Pêches Continentales (PPEC). RAF/87/099-TD/01/89 (Fr): 110p.

Gréboval D., and B. Horemans (eds), Selected Papers presented at the SADCC/FAO1989 Training Workshop on Fisheries Planning, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe,

15-24 Novembre 1988. UNDP/FAO Regional Project for InlandFisheries Planning (IFIP). RAF/87/099-TD/02/89 (En): 138p.

Horemans B., et Maes M. (éds), Rapport de la consultation technique sur les1989 lacs Cohoha et Rweru partagés entre le Burundi et le Rwanda

(Bujumbura, 13 et 14 Décembre 1989). Projet Regional PNUD/FAO pourla Planification des Pêches Continentales (PPEC). RAF/87/099-TD/03/89 (Fr): 94p.

Gréboval D., Management of the New Fisheries of Lake Victoria: Major socio-1989 economic issues. UNDP/FAO Regional Project for Inland Fisheries

Planning (IFIP), RAF/87/099-TD/04/89 (En): 25p.

Gréboval D. (ed), Principles of fisheries management and legislation of1990 relevance to the Great Lakes of East Africa: Introduction and case

studies. UNDP/FAO Regional Project for Inland Fisheries Planning(IFIP), RAF/87/099-TD/05/90 (En): 41p.

Gréboval D. (éd), Principes d'aménagement et de legislation des pêcheries des1990 grands lacs de l'Afrique de l'Est: Introduction et etudes de cas.

Projet Regional PNUD/FAO pour la Planification des PêchesContinentales (PPEC). RAF/87/099-TD/05/90 (Fr): en preparation.

Bean C.E., Introductory guide to the economics of fisheries management.1990 UNDP/FAO Regional Project for Inland Fisheries Planning (IFIP),

RAF/87/099-TD/06/90 (En): in preparation.

Report of the IFIP/SWIOP Workshop on Economic Aspects of Fisheries Development1990 and Management. UNDP/FAO Regional Project for Inland Fisheries

Planning (IFIP), RAF/87/099-TD/07/90 (En): 22p .

Corsi F., Evaluation des pêcheries zairoises des lacs Idi Amin/Edouard et1990 Mobutu Sese Seko. Projet Regional PNUD/FAO pour la Planification

des Pêches Continentales (PPEC). RAF/87/099-TD/08/90 (Fr): 64p.

25

Rapport de la première réunion du Comité consultatif du projet régional pour1990 la planification des pêches continentales. Projet Régional

PNUD/FAO pour la Planification des Pêches Continentales (PPEC).RAF/87/099-TD/09/90 (Fr): 24p.

Report of the First Meeting of the Advisory Committee of the Regional Project1990 for Inland Fisheries Planning. UNDP/FAO Regional Project for

Inland Fisheries Planning (IFIP), RAF/87/099-TD/09/90 (En): 22p.

Report of the Symposium on Socio-economic aspects of Lake Victoria Fisheries.1990 A Symposium organized by the IFIP Project under the framework of

the CIFA Sub-comittee for Lake Victoria, 24-27 April, Kisumu,Kenya, UNDP/FAO Regional Project for Inland Fisheries Planning(IFIP), RAF/87/099-TD/10/90 (En): 24p.

Maes M., Report on the Technical Consultation on Lake Mweru shared by Zaire1990 and Zambia, 08-10 August, Lusaka, Zambia, UNDP/FAO Regional

Project for Inland Fisheries Planning (IFIP), RAF/87/099-TD/11/90(En): 44p.

Maes M., Rapport de la Consultation technique sur le lac Mweru partagé par le1990 Zaire et la Zambie, 08-10 août, Lusaka, Zambie, Projet Régional

PNUD/FAO pour la Planification des Pêches Continentales (PPEC).RAF/87/099-TD/12/90 (Fr): 45p.

Papers presented at the IFIP/SWIOP Workshop on Economic Aspects of Fisheries1990 Development and Management. UNDP/FAO Regional Project for Inland

Fisheries Planning (IFIP), RAF/87/099-TD/12/90 (En): 122p.

Case studies presented at the IFIP/SWIOP Workshop on Economic Aspects of1990 Fisheries Development and Management. UNDP/FAO Regional Project

for Inland Fisheries Planning (IFIP), RAF/87/099-TD/13/90 (En):115p.

Report of the Workshop on Fisheries Statistics and Information Systems for1990 Lake Victoria, 26-29 June 1990, Kampala, Uganda, UNDP/FAO Regional

Project for Inland Fisheries Planning (IFIP), RAF/87/099-TD/14/90(En): in preparation

Rapport de la consultation Technique sur l'aménagement des pêcheries des lacs1990 Edouard et Mobutu, 17-21 septembre 1990, Kampala, Ouganda, Projet

Régional PNUD/FAO pour la Planification des Pèches Continentales(PPEC). RAF/87/099-TD/15/90 (Fr): 30p.

Report of Technical Consultation on Management of the Fisheries of Lakes1990 Edward and Mobutu, 17-21 September 1990, Kampala, Uganda, UNDP/FAO

Regional Project for Inland Fisheries Planning (IFIP), RAF/87/099-TD/15/90 (En): in preparation

Report of the National Workshop on Fishery Statistics and Information Systems,1990 22-26 October 1990, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, UNDP/FAO Regional

Project for Inland Fisheries Planning (IFIP), RAF/87/099-TD/16/90(En): 33p.

26

U. WORKING PAPERS / DOCUMENTS DE TRAVAIL

Bean C.E., Selected abstracts of basic references and current literature in1989 fisheries economics. UNDP/FAO Regional Project for Inland

Fisheries Planning (IFIP), RAF/87/099-WP/01/89 (En): 51p.

Ssentongo G. W., Fish and fisheries of shared lakes of Eastern/Central/1990 Southern Africa. UNDP/FAO Regional Project for Inland Fisheries

Planning (IFIP), RAF/87/099-WP/02/89 (En): 19p.

Nfamara J.D., Recent observations on the fisheries of lake Tanganyika. UNDP/1990 FAO Regional Project for Inland Fisheries Planning (IFIP),

RAF/87/099-WP/03/90 (En): 16p.

Horemans B., Socio-economic surveys of the artisanal fisheries on Lake Malawi:1990 a case study. UNDP/FAO Regional Project for Inland Fisheries

Planning (IFIP), RAF/87/099-WP/04/90 (En): in preparation.

Proceedings of the Symposium on Socio-economic aspects of Lake Victoria1990 Fisheries. Volume 1 (unedited papers 1-6). UNDP/FAO Regional

Project for Inland Fisheries Planning (IFIP), RAF/87/099-WP/05/90(En): in preparation.

Nfamara J.D., Improved method for smoking fish in the Kigoma region of Lake1990 Tanganyika, Tanzania. UNDP/FAO Regional Project for Inland

Fisheries Planning (IFIP), RAF/87/099-WP/06/90 (En): 23p.

Proceedings of the Symposium on Socio-economic aspects of Lake Victoria1990 Fisheries. Volume 2 (unedited papers 7-11). UNDP/FAO Regional

Project for Inland Fisheries Planning (IFIP), RAF/87/099-WP/07/90(En): in preparation.