The qualitative losses in wheat stored in jute bags may be as high as 6.6% and reduction of such loss can be brought down to 2% by storing in metal bins ( Sinha and Sharma, 2004). However, it may be as high as 20–50% in the lesser developed countries, particularly in cover and plinth storage with poorly managed storage facilities ( Jayas, 2012). Storage losses are usually in the range of 1–2%, particularly in the developed countries, when grains are stored in well-managed silos with aeration and drying. Therefore, the dynamics of storage in terms of quality maintenance and losses form crucial components of economic and policy decisions. In many cases, Government agencies store food grains to ensure domestic food security, supply, and price stability in the market, and also to earn foreign exchange through export. While farmers store cereals for the purpose of seed, feed, and their own consumption, marketing agencies and traders store them for economic gain. Cereals, as agricultural produce, occupy an important place in human food, as they are primary sources of energy to the majority of the global population. Thus, the agricultural produce has to be stored safely using proper methods of preservation for consistent supply throughout the year. Although the harvest period of agricultural produce is relatively short, the demand for consumption extends throughout the year. However, after the harvest, several interrelated factors form complex interrelationships that may result in the deterioration of quality during storage. The post-harvest life and quality of agricultural produce depend mainly upon its quality at the time of harvest. This article discusses the role of FCI in food security, warehouse storage management practice as a model, and storage loss level of wheat during storage. The wheat procurement, storage, and distribution system of FCI is unique in the world and handles about 85 million tons of food grains annually by procuring from farmers at the guaranteed Minimum Support Price that meets certain quality standards. However, the storage losses in warehouse storage are also equivalent to silo storage of wheat when proper storage management practices are adopted and the Food Corporation of India (FCI) is the best example of a sustainable food storage system with only 0.3% storage losses in 3 years of wheat storage. Silo storage is considered the best option for wheat storage. 3Indian Council of Agricultural Research-Central Institute of Post-Harvest Engineering and Technology, Ludhiana, India.
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