Samenvatting

Agriculture is the mainstay of the Ethiopian economy. However, the production of crops in the Northern Ethiopia especially Tigray Region is at subsistence level due to drought, erratic rainfall and poor soil fertility. Since cactus pear is a drought-resistant plant, it is considered as a lifesaver fruit and a strategy for poverty reduction in a drought-affected area of the region. Despite its contribution to household income and food security in the area, the cactus per sub-sector is experiencing many constraints with limited attention given to its post-harvest loss management. Therefore, this research was carried out to identify opportunities for reducing post-harvest losses and recommend possible strategies to reduce post-harvest losses thereby improve production and smallholder’s income.