Thumbnail Image

Regional Training Workshop on Improved Fish Smoking Using The Thyarore System. Tanzania

GCP/RAF/466/EC SmartFish Project

Year of publication 2013

Pages 23 p.

Author Mgawe, Y. ;Simtoe, A.

Publisher FAO/IOC ;

Product type Book (series)

Series title SmartFish-FAO Report

Edition 1

Synopsis (short abstract) The Indian Ocean Commission through the SmartFish programme, in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), is implementing a regional fisheries strategy programme aimed at improving the sustainable regional supply of fish and fishery products. The programme has five different result areas, the fifth one being food security, which primarily focuses on the implementation of activities geared at reducing post-harvest fish losses that occur in small-scale f isheries. Regarding post-harvest fish loss reduction, the approach of SmartFish is to build on what has already been done in the region. More specifically, to build the capacity of various key institutions in the region in terms of a systematic application of fish loss assessment methodologies in small-scale fisheries as a precondition for rational intervention, and indeed to find practical ways to reduce such losses. In line with the above, the Fisheries Education and Training Agency (FETA), in collaboration with FAO-SmartFish, organized a regional training workshop on improved fish smoking using the Thyarore system, which was held in Mwanza, Tanzania, from 04 – 08 November 2013. Seventeen participants from Kenya, Burundi, Rwanda, United Republic of Tanzania, and Uganda took part in the training. Participants were Fisheries Officers from the respective countries. The competency-based training programme had two main learning outcomes: participants are able to design and construct a Thy arore system oven/kiln; participants are able to smoke fish using the Thyarore system. The training was conducted by experienced experts from FETA and Senegal who employed a variety of hands-on type training methods and practical sessions. The pre- and post-evaluation suggested that the teaching-learning process was appreciated. Likewise, the participants’ perception of the training was generally high and observations from the post training evaluation indicated that many are now planning to intr oduce FAO-Thyarore Technology systems in their respective countries.

Meeting Session Number SF-FAO/2013/27

Language English

Also available in:
No results found.

Related items

Showing items related by metadata.

  • Thumbnail Image
    Book (stand-alone)
    Study on the profitability of fish smoking with FTT-Thiaroye kilns in Côte d’Ivoire 2020
    Also available in:
    No results found.
    The FAO-Thiaroye fish processing technique (FTT) was developed in 2008–2009 by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations in collaboration with the Centre National de Formation des Techniciens des Pêches et de l’Aquaculture in Senegal. The goal in developing this technique was to solve many issues inherent to traditional fish smoking methods in terms of health, safety and the environment. After the FTT was developed in Senegal, many other countries in sub-Saharan Africa have adopted this new method, while others are considering doing so. Using Côte d’Ivoire as the benchmark country for introducing the FTT in small-scale fisheries, this study was based on the assumption that it would be risky to increase the number of these kilns without first establishing their profitability. To do this, the field study combined qualitative and quantitative methods with institutional partners in Abidjan and with fish processors at three of the four pilot FTT processing facilities (Abobo-Doumé, Braffedon and Guessabo).
  • Thumbnail Image
    Brochure, flyer, fact-sheet
    A cleaner, efficient and safer way to smoke fish 2024
    Also available in:
    No results found.
    Smoking and drying are crucial fish processing methods for small-scale fisheries in the tropics, essential for supplying fish to areas far from fishing zones, especially where infrastructure and cold chain logistics are lacking. Traditional smoking methods, however, present significant issues, including environmental damage from using wood as fuel, low output, and health risks like eye irritations and respiratory diseases, primarily affecting women processors. Since 2008, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has promoted the FAO-Thiaroye Processing Technique (FTT-Thiaroye). This improved smoking method reduces health hazards, increases smoking capacity per cycle, and consumes much less wood. It also reduces post-harvest losses due to limited chilling and freezing capacity. The FTT-Thiaroye technique has been adopted in at least 16 African countries and is also used in Asia and the Pacific. In Côte d'Ivoire, FAO has introduced FTT in five pilot communities, equipping them with kilns and organizing women’s cooperatives, improving productivity and working conditions. The use of wood use per kilo of smoked fish went down from 5 kilos to 0.8 kilos. Production also increased from 150-200 kg/day to 0.5-3 tonnes/day. In Sri Lanka, FAO has built five kilns in Ampara District and 12 in Batticaloa District. It has provided training on smoking techniques, fish cutting, costing, packing, marketing, and kiln maintenance. As a result of FAO’s action, firewood usage was reduced by 35 percent and the earnings of processors increased.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Book (stand-alone)
    FAO-Thiaroye processing technique: towards adopting improved fish smoking systems in the context of benefits, trade-offs and policy implications from selected developing countries 2019
    Also available in:
    No results found.
    More than 60 percent of global production of smoked fishery products occurs in Africa and Asia, highlighting their tremendous significance in food and nutrition security and as a vehicle for livelihood support in these regions. However, prevailing processing technologies entail significant deleterious health implications for both processors and consumers. The main hazard relates to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which are known to have carcinogenic potential. In response to the PAH challenge and leveraging on the Codex Alimentarius Code of Practice guidelines for preventing their occurrence in smoked and dried products, the FAO-Thiaroye fish processing technique (FTT) was developed under a collaborative research approach between FAO and a fisheries institution in Senegal. To date, the FTT has been introduced in 16 countries. The technique addresses the PAH problem, and yields products that comply with international limits on the hazard, while fostering many social, economic and environmental benefits. However, experience from some African and Asian countries points to the need for a context-driven balance that ensures that the gains associated with its use can be realized without making expensive compromises, especially in terms of fisheries resources status and trade dynamics. Policy and regulatory frameworks need to be informed by a risk-based approach and supportive of consistent benchmarking and differentiation of FTT products. This document reviews the lessons from those countries, and makes the case for a hard, evidence-based, policy backbone to safeguard the sustainable, eco-friendly supply of safe smoked (and dried) fishery products to support food security, particularly in the developing world.
Show more

Users also downloaded

Showing related downloaded files

No results found.