Table 9.

Summary of cause of inefficiencies in traditional post-harvest processing of quinoa and solutions offered [33].

Cause of Inefficiencies	Solutions
Adaptation of technologies developed for processing other grains in an inadequate manner for processing quinoa (e.g., scarification)	An efficient system of dry cleaning was designed, constructed and implemented, that made use of the inherent abrasive properties of quinoa for scarification
Use of washing systems with a wide and variable range of residence time, leading to product variability (not all grains are washed for the correct amount of time)	A washer was designed with the objective of accomplishing the simulation of a laminar trajectory of the grain, using a turbulent flow, thus, creating a homogenous process. In addition, the residence time was also reduced
Use of drying systems with insufficient air flows, thus allowing part of the product to re-humidify	Development of a more efficient drying system, making use of a turbine
Use of technologies that did not focus on or allow for the recovery of sub-products of high commercial value (e.g., saponins)	A saponin recovery system was installed to recover this important sub-product which has high economic value in the market
Use of technologies that operated in small batches, instead of a continuous process	The new technology operates in a continuous manner and uses fewer operators
Excessive and unnecessary number of unit operations in the process	The installed technology is more efficient in the drying and washing steps and therefore no addiction cleaning operations are needed