Drying pineapples reduces waste and brings more money to farmers since pineapples are wasted because they cannot be kept fresh for longer than a week.
Harvesting pineapple at the right stage gives quality delicious products.
Hygienic harvest
Harvest pineapples if 3 quarters turned orange yellow this makes it delicious after drying also place in crates to keep them clean and free from bruises then keep in shade to prevent spoilage. Sort to remove damaged ones, weigh to know how much they will give when dried but wash and rinse with clean water. However all workers should have clean hands, short finger nails and not sick as this ensures hygenic products.
Peel and dry
Peel the pineapples and cut them into desired shapes of 1 centimetre thick, lay the slices on trays without overlapping so that they can dry evenly then place the trays in the drier and close tightly to keep heat inside, pests and dust out but after 2 days remove the trays from the solar drier and cool the slices if still warm before parking.
Sort, weigh, and park the dried slices basing on the required weight in the market.
