Now Available! EDN 169

In this issue

• Direct Solar Dryers: A simple, cheap option for solar food drying
• Echoes from Our Network: In-Field Grafted Avocado and Fertility Ditches with Elephant Grass and/or Bananas
• From ECHO’s Seed Bank: Moth Bean Vigna aconitifolia, a Multipurpose Legume for Arid Climates
• Books, Websites, and Other Resources: New Book Release - Community Seed Bank Options

Download EDN 169

Direct Solar Dryers

A simple, cheap option for solar food drying

James Dontje

Excerpt:

We have dried a variety of fruits and vegetables successfully with this dryer, using thermometers, dietary scales, and small relative humidity sensors to “calibrate” the drying so that simple visual and texture cues can be used to determine when the food is dry enough for storage. A lot of testing has been done with mango slices –they are more difficult to dry sufficiently in a humid environment and if we can dry them successfully (and we have done so), we think we can dry just about any other food.

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