This study aimed to evaluate onion (Allium cepa L.) storage practices and structures in the North and Far North regions of Cameroon. A structured and validated questionnaire was administered to producers who owned storage facilities. The study covered 52 producer facilities in each of the two regions. These producers included individuals, Common Initiative Groups, Cooperative Societies and Cooperatives with a Board of Directors. The results showed that individual growers are the primary producers (60.58%). The five onion varieties known in these regions are Goudami (adopted by 100% of respondents), Chagari, Violet of Galmi, alongside more marginal varieties such as Belami and Safari. Storage warehouses consisted predominantly of construction sites (38.46%). Temperatures range between 36 and 40℃ in 26.92% of facilities in the North and between 31 and 35°C in 55.77% of facilities in the Far North. Humidity levels were higher (31 to 50%) in 98.07% of facilities in the North whereas very low levels (10 to 20%) in 82.69% of cases in the Far North. The lack of measurement is more common in the Far North (7.7%) than in the North (1.0%). Constructions sites and Rudu were the most vulnerable, with losses reaching up to 42.99% and 32.56%, respectively. Producers were willing (96.15%) to adopt modern storage technologies such as controlled atmosphere storage, to safeguard stocks for periods exceeding four months. This work provided information for managing technical and technological conditions in onion storage facilities and paves the way for the introduction of modern preservation technologies.
| Published in | American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry (Volume 14, Issue 5) |
| DOI | 10.11648/j.ajaf.20261405.14 |
| Page(s) | 261-272 |
| Creative Commons |
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited. |
| Copyright |
Copyright © The Author(s), 2026. Published by Science Publishing Group |
Allium cepa L., Storage, Post-harvest Losses, Northern Regions, Cameroon
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APA Style
Halimatou, S., Nkouam, G. B., Bikai, J. (2026). Characterization of Onion (Allium cepa L.) Storage Practices in the North and Far North Regions of Cameroon. American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry, 14(5), 261-272. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajaf.20261405.14
ACS Style
Halimatou, S.; Nkouam, G. B.; Bikai, J. Characterization of Onion (Allium cepa L.) Storage Practices in the North and Far North Regions of Cameroon. Am. J. Agric. For. 2026, 14(5), 261-272. doi: 10.11648/j.ajaf.20261405.14
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Download@article{10.11648/j.ajaf.20261405.14,
author = {Soumeiya Halimatou and Gilles Bernard Nkouam and Jacques Bikai},
title = {Characterization of Onion (Allium cepa L.) Storage Practices in the North and Far North Regions of Cameroon},
journal = {American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry},
volume = {14},
number = {5},
pages = {261-272},
doi = {10.11648/j.ajaf.20261405.14},
url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajaf.20261405.14},
eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajaf.20261405.14},
abstract = {This study aimed to evaluate onion (Allium cepa L.) storage practices and structures in the North and Far North regions of Cameroon. A structured and validated questionnaire was administered to producers who owned storage facilities. The study covered 52 producer facilities in each of the two regions. These producers included individuals, Common Initiative Groups, Cooperative Societies and Cooperatives with a Board of Directors. The results showed that individual growers are the primary producers (60.58%). The five onion varieties known in these regions are Goudami (adopted by 100% of respondents), Chagari, Violet of Galmi, alongside more marginal varieties such as Belami and Safari. Storage warehouses consisted predominantly of construction sites (38.46%). Temperatures range between 36 and 40℃ in 26.92% of facilities in the North and between 31 and 35°C in 55.77% of facilities in the Far North. Humidity levels were higher (31 to 50%) in 98.07% of facilities in the North whereas very low levels (10 to 20%) in 82.69% of cases in the Far North. The lack of measurement is more common in the Far North (7.7%) than in the North (1.0%). Constructions sites and Rudu were the most vulnerable, with losses reaching up to 42.99% and 32.56%, respectively. Producers were willing (96.15%) to adopt modern storage technologies such as controlled atmosphere storage, to safeguard stocks for periods exceeding four months. This work provided information for managing technical and technological conditions in onion storage facilities and paves the way for the introduction of modern preservation technologies.},
year = {2026}
}
TY - JOUR T1 - Characterization of Onion (Allium cepa L.) Storage Practices in the North and Far North Regions of Cameroon AU - Soumeiya Halimatou AU - Gilles Bernard Nkouam AU - Jacques Bikai Y1 - 2026/10/23 PY - 2026 N1 - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajaf.20261405.14 DO - 10.11648/j.ajaf.20261405.14 T2 - American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry JF - American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry JO - American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry SP - 261 EP - 272 PB - Science Publishing Group SN - 2330-8591 UR - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajaf.20261405.14 AB - This study aimed to evaluate onion (Allium cepa L.) storage practices and structures in the North and Far North regions of Cameroon. A structured and validated questionnaire was administered to producers who owned storage facilities. The study covered 52 producer facilities in each of the two regions. These producers included individuals, Common Initiative Groups, Cooperative Societies and Cooperatives with a Board of Directors. The results showed that individual growers are the primary producers (60.58%). The five onion varieties known in these regions are Goudami (adopted by 100% of respondents), Chagari, Violet of Galmi, alongside more marginal varieties such as Belami and Safari. Storage warehouses consisted predominantly of construction sites (38.46%). Temperatures range between 36 and 40℃ in 26.92% of facilities in the North and between 31 and 35°C in 55.77% of facilities in the Far North. Humidity levels were higher (31 to 50%) in 98.07% of facilities in the North whereas very low levels (10 to 20%) in 82.69% of cases in the Far North. The lack of measurement is more common in the Far North (7.7%) than in the North (1.0%). Constructions sites and Rudu were the most vulnerable, with losses reaching up to 42.99% and 32.56%, respectively. Producers were willing (96.15%) to adopt modern storage technologies such as controlled atmosphere storage, to safeguard stocks for periods exceeding four months. This work provided information for managing technical and technological conditions in onion storage facilities and paves the way for the introduction of modern preservation technologies. VL - 14 IS - 5 ER -
University Institute of Technology, University of Ngaoundere, Ngaoundere, Cameroon
National Advanced School of Engineering, University of Maroua, Maroua, Cameroon
University Institute of Technology, University of Ngaoundere, Ngaoundere, Cameroon
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