Economic and Financial Evaluation of a Low-Cost Portable Solar Dryer for Maturing and Drying of Dates: Business for Development (B4D) Report

Abstract

One of the challenges affecting small scale date palm producers in the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC) countries is the destination of the goods that they cannot consume or sell. This is especially exacerbated when harvesting periods are very short and products have high rates of deterioration (ie., some date palm varieties). In the practice, freezing process is usually the first solution, but it causes storage and handling difficulties and does not prevent the degradation of nutrients and organoleptic properties in addition to the high energy cost used for this process.

Yet solar energy is well developed to be involved in different sectors including agriculture. Solar radiation is utilized in heat and electricity generation. Both energies are key factors in food processing. The electricity is used in driving mechanical power and controlling processes, whereas heat is utilized in maturing, concentrating, drying and sterilizing of food in different processes. Sun drying is traditionally used in several regions in the world to dry various fruits like grapes, figs, etc. To this end, the aim of the drying process is to preserve fruits and vegetables, enhance quality and hygiene of dried products, and reduce post-harvest losses. Although there are many dryers for drying agriculture products, a low-cost indigenous design is not available for drying dates, vegetables, and fruits. Hence, a portable drying unit for dates has been designed, fabricated, and evaluated for its drying efficacy for the usage of small-scale date palm producers in the GCC countries. The solar dryer is based on the principle of flat plate solar collector and greenhouse effect.

This technology is considered to be one of the most attractive and promising applications of solar energy systems in the GCC countries. The aim is to improve the quality of dried dates, accelerate their drying process, and obtain cleaner fruits that are free from dust. This technology reduces the cost of energy, labor, and time required while improving the quality of the fruits. This report focuses on the technical and economic assessment of the technology in the GCC region while presenting a rigorous economic analysis of the return on investment in the technology.