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Journal
Harmattan storage: keeping garri crisp and grain dry
The harmattan is kind to garri while it is being roasted and cruel to it in a badly kept store. Dry days, cold nights and dust all play a part. This is how our stores stay clean and our bags stay crisp.
Know your moisture
Garri should leave the mill below 10 percent moisture and grain below 13 percent. We test every batch. If you buy in bulk, ask for the number, and test a sample yourself with a cheap meter.
Pallets, always
Never stack bags on a bare floor. Cold nights make floors damp by morning, even in the harmattan. Wooden pallets or raised blocks let air move under the stack.
A dry store is a quiet store. If you can smell it, it is already too late.
Keep off the walls
Leave a gap of at least half a metre between the stack and any wall. Walls sweat when the temperature drops at night, and the bags against them go soft first.
Dust and pests
Sweep daily, cover open bags, and check for weevils every week. First in, first out: the oldest bags leave the store first, always.
Quick list
Pin this up in the store
- Use within nine months of the date on the bag
- Reseal opened bags with a tie, not a fold
- Keep the store dark and airy
- In the rains, move stock off the lowest pallet row
Can I share this with my cooperative?
Yes, please do. Outgrowers get a printed copy with their season pack.
Who writes the journal?
Our block managers, mill leads and extension officers, edited by the communications team.