Assessment of fish post-harvest losses in Tekeze dam and Lake Hashenge fishery associations: northern Ethiopia

Background Fish are perishable and hence susceptible to high post-harvest losses. Post-harvest losses in fisheries include material losses of fish due to spoilage, breakage, size, discarding of by-catches and operational losses. This research was conducted to propose a management strategy to reduce post-harvest losses suffered by Tekeze dam and Lake Hashenge fishery associations. Methods This research was conducted in Tekeze dam and Lake Hashenge fishery associations. The data were collected from primary and secondary quantifiable information on post-harvest losses. A total of eight official associations were surveyed during the study period. Results Each of these associations was found to own at least a refrigerator and a boat with (7.67 ± 3.82) nets. The mean (±SD) number of refrigerators owned at present is (11.13 ± 10.09), and 94.9% of the respondents involved in the study were males. Fish loss and yield per year of the associations showed a positive strong significant correlation ( r = 0.948, df = 6, p < 0.01). Conclusion Physical loss was the most common loss observed causing high economic loss. Improvement of facilities from the point of production until it reaches the consumer is vital, and fish must be stored and distributed under chilled temperature conditions.