Table 2.

Comparison of various drying methods

Open sun drying	Mechanized-fuel drying	Solar drying
• No equipment costs	• Drying is even and continuous	• Product is protected from rain, insects, animals and dust and fecal matter
• Labor-intensive	• Initial high cost of equipment	• Faster drying than open solar drying, therefore reduces mould growth
• But labor is cheap in developing countries	• Continuing fuel costs	• Higher drying temperatures lead to more complete drying and therefore longer shelf life
• Requires more land (Eg. 100 m2 per ton of rice)	• This may be offset by using cheaper fuels like burning rice husk (Eg. One ton of rice gives 200 kg of husks) or fire wood but these are not environmentally friendly alternatives	• Finally, control over drying rates is possible. But:
• But large space may not be an issue		• Higher initial cost
• Unprotected from dust, animals, insects etc. unhygienic		• Drying only during the day i.e. discontinuous