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Potato Processing Info

Table of Contents

Potato chip making at village level ................................................................................................................. 2


Midterm report ( Sept. 15th to Dec. 30th) to CTI on sun dried potato product project at Gohaldanga GRSV
Sevakendra ..................................................................................................................................................... 5
Activity Report: during November-05 to March-06 in CTI funded Sun Dried Potato Product Processing
Projects at Gohaldanga Sevakendra ................................................................................................................ 7
“A METHOD BY WHICH POTATO-FARMERS CAN INCREASE THEIR PROFIT” (CIRCULAR
NO: 2; DECEMBER, 2005) ......................................................................................................................... 10

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Potato chip making at village level
By Shivram Murtry

Potato is one of the most important food crops in India. Uttar Pradesh is one of the major growers
of the crop. Almost all the potatoes produced in this area are harvested between mid-February and
mid-March. This often results in a glut, lower prices for the farmer and up to 30% wastage.

SOTEC (Society for Development of Appropriate Technology located in Bareilly, UP) in


collaboration with CTI (Compatible Technology International located in St. Paul, Minnesota, USA)
has developed village level technology to convert potatoes in to chips and strips with very long shelf
life. These are sold in bulk to traders. The chips are sold in bulk to consumers who fry them as
snacks. The economic analysis shows that investment in units with 200 kg. 500 Kg. capacities can
be recovered in 1-2 years. More than one hundred entrepreneurs in and around Bareilly have set
up these seasonal enterprises.

Location
SOTEC‘s research facilities RTVDC (Rural Technology and Village Development Center) are
located in Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh. Peter Chowfin is the Executive Director. He can be contacted
at:

SOTEC 182, Civil Lines, Bareilly, UP 243001

Tel: 0581 572138, 557180 E-


mail: pchowfin@sancharnet.in

CTI is located at Hamline University in St. Paul, Minnesota, USA. Bruce Humphrys is the
Executive Director.

CTI Hamline University Box 109 1536 Hewitt Ave St. Paul, MN 55104

Tel: 651-632-3912 Fax: 651-632-3913 E-


mail: cti@compatibletechnology.org Web:
www.compatibletechnology.org

Raw Materials and Equipment

Fresh potatoes, water, chemicals, fuel for heating water to blanch the potatoes. Additional
equipment needed include hand or bicycle powered peelers and slicers, nylon nets to hold the
potatoes during blanching and chemical dip, large pots for washing, blanching, chemical dipping
and drying racks with nylon covers for solar drying. Plastic bags for bulk packaging the finished
product is also needed. Mechanical timers are needed for consistent processing.

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Human Resources
6 people can process 600 Kg. of raw potatoes in one day with large slicers and peelers. Smaller
units can process 200-300 Kg./day. Women can do all the work with smaller slicers and peelers.
Large slicers and peelers may require men to turn them. At 16% yield 100 Kg. of dried chips or
strips are produced per day. The processing can be done from March through June. Typically the
potatoes are processed in the morning and placed on the drying racks. On a clear day the chips are
completely dried by evening. The wholesale price of chips is Rs. 30 35/Kg. With 80 to 90
processing days in a season the cost of the larger units can be recovered in one year.

Detailed Steps

1 Potato Selection: Purchase medium to large white skin potatoes at the peak of the
harvest. Cost of potatoes is a key factor in economic viability.
2 Washing and Peeling: Place 25-50 Kg. of unwashed potatoes in the SOTEC’s Nave
brand Washer-Peeler. Rotate the drum at 60 RPM and start the flow of water in to it. Rotate the
drum until the water coming out of the drum is clear (approx. 15 minutes).
3 Rectifying: Peeled potatoes must be examined and eyes and bad spots in the potatoes
must be removed by hand. Attention to this activity can increase the quality and price of the chips.
Keep the peeled potatoes submerged in water.
4 Slicing: Fill a tub with water containing ½ gram of Sodium Meta Bisulphite (SMS) /Liter of
water (0.05%). Place nylon net in the slicing tub to collect potato slices. Feed peeled and rectified
potatoes in SOTEC’s Nave brand Slicer and start slicing in to the slicing tub. Slice thickness of 2.5
mm +/_ 1 mm. is the best for processing and eating quality.
5 Rinsing: Sliced potatoes should be kept in the nylon bags for the rest of the process. Rinse
the slices 2-4 times in cold water to remove the surface starch. Change the water when it appears
milky. Starch can be filtered and dried as a by-product.
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6 Blanching: Blanch the bags of potato slices by putting in to hot water at >93 C for about 3-
4 minutes. Agitate the slices to insure even heating. Blanching inactivates enzymes and prevents
the chips from discoloration. The blanching water contains 0.1% SMS and 0.1% Acetic acid.
7 Chemical Bath: Remove the bags from the blancher and let them drain for 2-3 minutes
before putting them in to a chemical bath containing 0.1% SMS for 5 minutes. Agitate the slices 3-4
times.
8 Drying: Remove the bags from the chemical bath and let them drain for a few minutes.
Empty the bags on to drying racks and spread uniformly to ensure speedy and even drying. Chips
must not overlap as it interferes in drying and results in poor quality. Strips may overlap but must be
stirred several times during drying by raking them. Racks must be covered with nylon net to
maintain sanitary quality.
9 Processing starch: Raw starch collected in slicing and rinsing tubs will settle to the bottom
if left standing for about 10 minutes. Pour off excess water, stir and filter through a cloth to remove
non-starch particles. Dry the starch by spreading it on a cloth. Break lumps after it has dried
completely.

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Cost
For the large units (600 kg./day) the following cost was developed by SOTEC in 2003.

Capital Cost: Rs. 38,500


SOTEC Machinery Rs. 35,000
SOTEC Consultancy Rs. 3,000
Pre-Operative expenses Rs. 500

Working Capital (for one season of 80 days) Rs. 1,44,400

Raw potatoes 600 kg./Day at Rs. 2/Kg. 96,000


Fuel 9,600
Chemicals Rs. 2,000
Labor (6 persons at Rs. 50/day) Rs. 24,000
Plastic bags (packaging) Rs. 12,800

Income
Revenue: 100 Kg./day x 80 days x Rs. 30/Kg. Rs. 240,000

Gross Income: (Revenue – working capital) Rs. 95,600

The Gross Income will be used to pay for any Interest cost to pay for the Capital (Fixed and
Working) and selling and administrative expenses. It is possible to pay for the Capital equipment at
the end of the first year. If the laborers owned the equipment, they could use the profits to save for
equipment repair and maintenance, pay bonus, and expand the business.

Sensitivity analysis was conducted at several raw materials cost and selling price of chips. If the
Raw material cost increases to Rs. 3/Kg. and the selling price of chips drops to Rs. 25/Kg. the
proposition is no longer profitable.

Implementation Record
When the current phase of technology dissemination is completed, in June 2004 we expect more
than 90 new manufacturing enterprises will be operating in the districts of Bareilly, Badayun and
Firozabad. In 2003 several new units were set up in the villages of Ujhani and Sirsaganj in these
districts.

Where to see

Please contact SOTEC office in Bareilly, UP. They have demonstration equipment at their
research center RTVDC in Bareilly and they will be able to arrange site visits and training.

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Midterm report ( Sept. 15th to Dec. 30th) to
CTI on sun dried potato product project at
Gohaldanga GRSV Sevakendra
By Bibek Roy
January 15, 2007

1. Fabrication of Peelers and Slicers: With the funds from CTI, Amar Engineering Firm at
Khirpai in cooperation with Gohaldanga Sevakendra and with the Technical help from Mr. Lalit
Loyal successfully fabricated one unit each of manual and mechanical peelers and manual and
mechanical slicers. Beside these units, Amar Engineering has fabricated 4 units of each for the
purchase of interested individual groups. For these activities Mr. Lalit Loyal came to Khirpai to
provide Technical Assistance two time for a total of 27 days. Based on the cost of these 5 sets
of each the current costs of the units have been fixed currently as ( without Tax):
Manual Units : Peeler: Rs. 6,500/; Slicer: Rs. 12,500/; Total for the set=
Rs. 18,900/.
Mechanical Units: Peeler: 14,900/; Slicer: Rs. 16,500/; Total for the set=
Rs. 31,400/
( It should be noted the price of Iron based materials have risen over 20% in last 2 years; So also is
the transportation costs from Kolkata to Khirpai).

Amar Engineering has been contacted by three groups for the purchase of 3 units already. More
that a dozen of individuals and groups has shown interested. But all are waiting to see hoe the
Potato production and the price of harvested potato will be this year. Amar Engineering can
fabricate the units now in 4 to 7 days depending upon the types.

2. Construction : The construction of the Storage building is half way done and is expected to be
completed by the end of January. The composte Pit has been completed.
3. Printed Materials Preparation: A Pamphlet in Bengali on processing of sun dried potato
products have been prepared, and being distributed to interested villagers and other individuals.
Beside this, Two Bengali Flyers, describing the profit from the sun dried potato products, have
been prepared, printed and being distributed to interested farmers, self-help groups, business
people, administration etc.
4. Meeting with People: In the last tree months Purnima and I have meet and discussed the
process and economy of solar dried potato processing programs to : State Minister of Self-Help-
Group, State Chief Secretary of rural development, District Panchyat Pradhan and director of
Self-Help Group in Hooghly District, Depyty Panchat Pradhan in Medinipur District, Head of
Block Self Help groups in Medinipur District, convention of Vab Prachar Samity with 50
group leaders from West Medinipur, East Medinipur , and Bankura Districts, Panchayat group,
Local Panchayt group, Local Party Coordinators, Area Party Coordinator, Local Self Help
Groups, Village Farmerrs in evening meetings in the villages. Printed Pamphlets and Flyers
were distributed in to individuals in these meetings. This involved extensive traveling to
different places by car.

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5. Project submitted: On request of the State Chief Secretary, a project was submitted ,
describing how a training cum processing center can be established in each of the 4 district
Block Head Quarter for the Self Help Group. The project described the involvement of
Gohaldanga Sevakendra( training of processing and quality control), Amar Engineering (
Supplying the machineries and overlooking their function), Amar Trading( Purchase of the
dried products at a price fixed by Sevakendra) , and State and Local Administration( providing
and handling of funds and selection and management of the self-help groups) to make the
program successful. This is now being processed at the different levels of State Administration,
involed with Rural Economy Development.
6. Demonstration of the Processing at the Sevakendra Training Center: So far processing of
products , using Cold Storage Potatoes, have been demonstrated to total of 18 groups. Once
fresh potatoes become available ( from February), this will be done more frequently.
7. Product Development: Both Chips and Strings, made in Sevakendra in March 2006, have been
fried in oil , spiced (by Purnima) and given for tasting to more than 100 people from different
levels. The products were accepted with high opinion on its market success.
After the Grinders were brought by Steve and Nancy Liable, we tried the machine to make
powder from dried Chips and String made at Sevakendra in March 2006. It was very very hard
to make powder from the Chips, unless it is broken to small pieces by some means. However
the strings could be grounded and 2-3 times grinding to fine powder. This could be soaked very
quickly in water. Purnima made COPS with the soaked powder and about 10 people tasted it
with ketchup. They all liked it very much. Since we do not have the dried products from March
2006, we will do it again starting March , when we will start producing dried products from the
newly harvested potatoes.
8. Costs: Total costs so far will be about Rs. 90, 000 :for Machine fabrication( 4 units- one
each); Construction ( partly of storage and composte pit), Travel ( Lalit and Bibek/Purnima),
Salary( 50%-2 persons) , Preparation of Pamphlet and flyers, Potato purchase, Preparation of
products for tasting. etc.
9. Lalit‟s Monthly payment from January to December, 2006: Rs. 1,07,360/ ( Rs.8,600 x12=
1,06,700 = postal cost Rs.660) [ CTI fund received = Rs.1,07,000]

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Activity Report: during November-05 to
March-06 in CTI funded Sun Dried Potato
Product Processing Projects at Gohaldanga
Sevakendra
By Bibek Roy

Nov. „05:
1. Construction of Potato processing building was completed before November, except for the
final concrete pouring on the floor, floor lay-out and supply of electric line and water line
2. After Lalit arrived at the Center the following activities were completed during his stay: a.
Painting of the machineries and putting together the parts
b. Set the machineries on the floor of the building and pour final concrete
c. Completed the floor lay-out as suggested by Lalit
d. Provide temporary electric line and water line
e. Went to nearby towns and bought needed accessories for processing( for washing,
blanching, drying etc.)

f. Purchased potatoes( 100Kg; from cold storage), started


processing for training to make both chips and strips and drying. Four individuals,
including Bibek and Purnima learned the methods. [The product quality was not of good
quality[ as potatoes were old and chemicals necessary to retain color were not used due to
unavailability]. Also it took 2 days to dry due to winter temperature)

Dec.‟ 05:
1. Went to Kolkata and bought necessary chemicals ( Na-meta –bi-sulfite and acetic acid) and
tools.
2. Got the permanent plumbing and electric lines put for the processing building
3. Came back to Center and started processing and demonstration to farmers, interested villagers,
administrative and legislative individuals

Jan.‟06:
1. Prepared a one-page flyer in Bengali version and distributed copies in the villages and towns
and to the officials.
2. Visited District, Subdivision, Block and Panchayt officials and discussed about the Potato
project and invited them to come and see the demonstration
3. Demonstrated processing to interested groups
4. Had evening village meetings to talk to villagers about the advantages of processing potatoes
5. Demonstrated the teachers and the senior students from the local school and explained the
economical advantages of the process
6. Discussed with the owner of the engineering firm in Khirpai on the possibility of making the
processing machineries in his facility (in conjunction with Sevakendra)

Attachment VI (contd)

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Feb.‟06:
1. As the raw potatoes ( different varieties harvested early in other parts of the country) became
available, bought 100 Kg total of 2 varieties and started processing to determine quality and
yield of the dried products ( both are about the same as Joyti variety, which is grown locally
and used later)
2. Used the dried products to prepare fried snacks (Purnima) and got tested for acceptance( chips
and strips)by the local people( they liked it)

3. As the local variety( Joyti) became available, processing was done with Joyti and the dried
product was compared with the other 2 varieties processed earlier. Joyti gave 12 to 13 % dried
products(chips and strips)
The products were given to one buyer in town and one in Kolkata. Both liked the products and the
town buyer immediately agreed to purchase all the products at Rs. 60 to 70 per Kg( equivalent to
about Rs.700 to 900 per 100Kg of raw potatoes).
4. Jennie and Sara visited the Center and the following activities were undertaken:
a. Visit to the processing building and see the processing operation
b. taste the fried products
c. visit some close-by potato growing areas and talking to farmers,
d. discuss with the owner of the engineering firm about the manufacture of the equipments
e. visit the engineering firm facility in town,
f. took part in a meeting ( about 65 people) in the Center with interested farmers and
villagers, self-help groups, legislatures, government officials, political party people, and
others and explained the CTI’s interest in the program at the Center. Through discussion
by different individuals a
course of action plan was drawn so that the technology will be available for the uses of
wider group of people in the area.
g. discussed with Bibek and Purnima about the role of CTI so that Lalit can help in
developing the program at the Center in West Bengal.
March.‟06:
1. Due to unusual high temperature during February, information circulated that potato production
will be 35-40% less in the area this year. Harvesting usually starts from the middle of March in
this area. The area produces 70% of total 9 million tons of potatoes produced in West
Bengal(about 6 millions tons); only 50 % is consumed and for other 50%, there is no plan how it
will be marketed.Harvesting usually starts from mid- March. But with this information thay
prouction will be very low, price became very high ( Rs.400 per 100Kg ; usually it stays at Rs.
150 to Rs. 200 per 100Kg ) and farmers started harvesting unripe potatoes from the last week of
February and selling them right from the field to middlemen, who stored the potatoes in the
cold storage.
2. It became very hard to convince the farmers to use some of their potatoes for processing . A
total of 5 farmers brought 450Kg potatoes and got processed in the Center . Their products(chips
and strips) were immediately purchased from the
Attachment VI (contd)

3. Center by the buyer at Rs. 60 per Kg (which is equivalent to Rs.780 per 100Kg raw potatoes).
Those farmers were happy to get such a high return by processing the potatoes. As this
information was circulated in the villages, many potato producers came to enquire about it and
promised to get some of their produce processed in 2007 potato season.

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A NOTE: This has been an unusual year for the potato growers. Due to a heavy rain in October
the fields were too wet to plant potatoes early. Even with high price most farmers made very
marginal profit and many lost money due to low yield. Only those farmers who planted early and
used new seeds did a good profit. Yet this high price has never been in the past 25 years.

Next year will be a test year, as many farmers will plant more potatoes with the hope that the
price will be high as this year. There is a good chance that it will not happen and there will be a
glut of potatoes. That will make many individuals and groups to use some of their produce for
dried products. We have to be ready for that situation.

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“A METHOD BY WHICH POTATO-
FARMERS CAN INCREASE THEIR PROFIT”
(CIRCULAR NO: 2; DECEMBER, 2005)
GOHALDANGA RAMKRISHNA SARADA VIVEKANANDA SEVAKENDRA
(Reg. No. 8211/98) P.O. Gohaldanga, West Medinipur, West Bengal, Pin: 721232)

[ This is an English Translation of the Flyer materials , written in Bengali and distributed to Farmers
and interested people]

The farmers in Ghatal Sub-division in West Medinipur District and the surrounding Sub-divisions in
the Districts of Hoogly, Bankura, and Bardwan grow in a normal harvesting year, about 6 million tons
of potatoes (70% of total production of West Bengal). The economic situation of these agricultural
villages is greatly dependent on the profit and loss associated with potato farming. In most years the
profit margin, as compared to the efforts put by the farmers, is very low. Occasionally, the farmers end
up with loss. Yet, the farmers are cultivating potatoes every year with the uncertainty of profit and loss,
as there is no State-wide regulation associated with potato marketing.

How the farmers can increase their profit with certainty is briefly discussed in this circular of the
Sevakendra through “Five Questions and Answers”. For detail information please contact Sevakendra
in Gohaldanga and read Circular No. 1.

1. Question: Why, most of the years, the farmers make only marginal profit or incurred loss in
potatoes?
Answer: Its main reason is inequality in purchasing and selling of needed materials associated
potato farming and marketing of potato. A few reasons of this is listed below:
a): Farmers have to buy all the materials needed in growing potatoes at a very high price from
the outside businessmen. They ,in turn, sell their produce at a lower price to the outside
businessmen. These businessmen control the price in these deals. Farmers have no control in it.
Under this situation the profit margins of the businessmen become much higher than that of the
farmers.
b): Fresh potato is a perishable produce, and after harvest due to high temperature( in 80’s F)
and occasional rain it spoils fast. For fear of losing, the farmers, specially the small and medium
farmers, sell the potatoes soon after harvest, even from the field, at whatever price determined
by the middlemen buyer. So the farmer’s profit usually remains minimum.
c): Although large farmers and the middlemen could store the potatoes in cold storage and sell
it when the price gets higher within a few months, in the absence of price control and supply
from out of State create uncertainty for them also.

2. Question: How farmers can increase their profit from potatoes with certainty?
Answer: That can be possible if the perishable raw potatoes are converted to
High-priced, storage-stable, consumable-product(s). One way of this is:
a): Under the village situation, to cut the raw potatoes in chips and strings and dry them under
the sun.

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b): Soon after harvest, when the potato price is low( March to June) and temperature from sun
is high, convert the potatoes to sun dried products and sell that when the their price is high.

3. Question: By which method the potatoes can be converted to sun dried product in the villages?
Answer: There is a easy method to produce sun dried chips and strings from potatoes in the
villages. It was developed by CTI of Minneapolis, USA and SOTEC in Berilley, India. The
technique, in brief, involves:
a): First to remove the peel lightly either in a manual or in a mechanical Peeler machine.
b): Next cut the potatoes in slices or stripes with a cycle driven manual or a mechanical slicer
and blanch them to retain normal color.
c): Finally dry the chips and the strips under the Sun for complete drying.
d): Then put the dried products in clean bags, store, and sell when the price is high.

4. Question: What are the advantages of converting raw potatoes to sun dried
product and the economic benefits from them?
Answer: a):The dried chips and strips can be converted to ready-to-eat
consumable products after frying in oil.
b): This products have a very good market at Kolkata. In the cities and
towns they are now being sold. In most States in India the products have market.
c): 100Kg Jyoti and Chandramukhi varieties of potatoes, grown in this
area, will produce 12 to 14 Kg dry products. If the dry products are sold at a
minimum price of Rs. 50 per Kg, 13Kg will sell for Rs.650.**
d): The ladies group can also use the method and supplement the family
income

[ A note:** We estimated from the yield that we got from using the potatoes harvested in
2005 March and stored in cold storage. When we tested potatoes, harvested in 2006 March, Joyti
variety, produced about 13.5 to 14 kg.
We also used the information we got from Berielly about the price of dried
chips at Rs. 50 per Kg. But when we showed our products to a local merchant, he
agreed to buy the whole production of 2006 and 2007 at Rs. 60 per Kg. He will
sell the products to food manufacturersin towns at Rs.70 per Kg. In the retail market at Kolkata
the product sells for Rs. 80 per Kg].

5. Question: Where shall I get Information on the production of dried products from potatoes?
Answer: a): At present in Gohaldanga Sevakendra all the machineries necessary to make have
been installed and processing is being demonstrated to interested villagers. Preparation is
underway to teach the technology to the interested groups
From the area.
b) : Although at present the machineries are being fabricated through

SOTEC at Barielly, arrangements are being made so that those can be


fabricated by Amar Engineering at Khirpai through collaboration with
Sevakendra.
c) : The two units from Berielly cost about Rs.12,000 for manual operation and about
Rs.25,000 for mechanical operation. In addition to the machines, there will be
expenses for different accessories that are used in the complete process.
d) Between mid-February to June one unit can process 20,000Kg in manual units
and 100,000Kg in mechanical units in a total of 120 days

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e) Farmers and interested groups can form cooperatives and process their produce
with the manual units and improve the economy of their villages.
f) Large farmers and the potato buyers (middlemen) in the villages can use the
mechanical units and help in the economy of the villages.
g) It has to be remember that only the potatoes soon after harvest ( between
February/March to June) can be used to produce good quality sun dried products.
Potatoes stored in cold storage do not produce good quality products.

[ Potatoes , after harvesting in February and March can be stored in specialized storage
house up to June/July without spoilage. For the necessary information of the storage house,
please contact Sevakendra].

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