On a breezy December afternoon in the village of Mudasal Odai in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, fisherwoman Anasuya Indrakumar leisurely plaits her teenage daughter’s hair in the front yard of her thatched home instead of her usual chore of drying the fish.
Nearby, her husband mends damaged fishing nets, while a stray dog eats the leftover scraps. The ocean waves rhythmically crash on the beach while peacocks squawk and forage for food.
This feeling of peace is new for Indrakumar, who normally does not have a moment to rest between selling fresh fish in the morning and drying the rest in the afternoon sun, consistently watching over it to protect it from mangy strays or looters.
But thanks to a new local initiative, she can dry her fresh fish overnight in a solar-powered dryer installed inside a shed, instead of enduring the hot sun and relentless rain out in the open.
Dried fish, known as karuvadu in the local language, is a delicacy enjoyed across India, often prepared as a curry or served as a side dish with porridge. But the drying process can often take a toll on the women usually tasked with keeping watch — and covering their heads with a towel to protect themselves from the direct heat — while the men go out to fish.
Indrakumar looks older than 36; her skin is deeply tanned and her eyes etched with wrinkles from years of unrelenting toil. For someone who spent over two decades drying out fish the traditional way in her village, this time-saver gadget is a dream come true.
“From 4 am to 1 pm, I used to survive on just one cup of tea. My work was so demanding that having breakfast or lunch isn’t even an option,” Indrakumar said.
In December 2021, the M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation partnered with the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development to automate the drying process in Indrakumar’s village by setting up five mini and one medium-sized solar-powered dryers, giving villagers the opportunity to sell dried fish that was healthier, cleaner and more appealing than the traditional alternative.
This is a first-of-its-kind sustainable technology in India. The Foundation had previously installed these solar-powered dryers in the nearby town of Poompuhar ten years ago and had seen great results.
“Solar dryers hygienically process fish, attracting consumers who previously avoided karuvadu for its strong flavor, as solar-dried fish offers a milder taste and stays crispy for two months,” said the Foundation’s principal scientist S. Velvizhi. “This initiative has created a new consumer base, and [the Foundation] plans to expand it by installing more dryers at fisherwomen’s homes with community support.”
A stronger source of income
Indrakumar usually starts her day at 4 am by selling the fresh catch of fish at the market.
“Most of the days, it is the fish my husband caught at the sea. When the catch is poor, I buy fish from other fishermen and sell it in the market,” she said.
When the catch is poor, drying fish becomes another income source for the family and helps them sail through the month. “Only for fifteen days a month, my fisherman husband returns home with a satisfactory catch,” she said.
To prepare the dried fish, the village women purchase local fish varieties like nethili, kara, vazhai, and kanagalatha, soak them in salt water for 10-30 minutes, and place the brine-soaked fish in the solar dryer. They turn the fish around after three hours; by the next afternoon, they are usually dry. If not, they remain in the dryer for another day.
While solar dryers are convenient, they also reduce the weight of the dried fish drastically compared to traditional drying methods. Traditionally, to produce one kilogram of dried fish, the women have to harvest 2.45 kilograms (5.4 pounds) of fresh fish; however, to produce the same amount of dried fish with the solar dryer, the village women would need about 4 kilos (8.8 pounds) of fresh fish.
It still brings them profits because of their new customer base: supermarkets.
The presence of moisture also made it difficult to pack the traditionally-dried fish as it would spoil much quickly. “Previously, weekly markets were the sole selling point, and unsold fish after five weeks were offloaded to chicken farms for as low as Rs 50 ($0.58) for a kilo,” villager A. Sathya said, who has been in the business for 15 years.
“Earlier, supermarket owners avoided doing business with us because the fish had a heavy smell. Now, I sell a kilo of solar-dried fish for Rs 550 ($6.36) in the supermarket, which is more than twice the amount paid by local groceries,” said S. Valarmathi, who has been a part of the dried fish business for the past three years.
After her husband’s demise, Valarmathi’s only path to financial stability came through solar-dried fish. “I sell fresh catch as my primary income, but dried fish serves as a supplementary source,” she said. Valarmathi is able to sell 10 kilograms (22.0 pounds) of dried fish and make around INR 6,000 a week (nearly $70), which is about half of her weekly income.
A solution towards health and wealth
One of the cheapest among all fisheries products, dried fish provide a rich source of essential amino acids, proteins, essential fatty acids, and a variety of minerals and vitamins. The global dried fish economy has long played a crucial role in food security, nutrition, and commerce.
“Prior to the introduction of ice-making technologies and cold chains, dried fish were the main form in which fisheries catches were traded and consumed,” wrote authors of a 2022 study.
However, unsafe drying practices could cause health hazards. Many studies done globally show that traditional open-air drying processes for fish frequently lead to contamination with pesticide residues, heavy metals, microorganisms, and mercury, posing serious health risks to consumers.
Another study involved drying sardines on sandy beaches in Oman for up to seven days, depending on outdoor temperatures, and found that open-sun drying leads to significant losses (around 30-40%) of the dried fish due to factors like weather, dust, contamination, and animal interference.
The study also showed that the solar-dried fish “were found better than the fish dried in open-sun in terms of drying time, texture and color.”
Solar-dried fish is also a healthier alternative due to the presence of less external moisture and salt. “While we use 500 grams of salt in traditional procedure, it takes just 100 grams in solar dryers,” Sathya said.
But this technology has its own set of challenges. For women seeking relief from the heat that accompanies the drying process, the solar dryer yard offers little respite, as the intense heat generated by the panels forces them to step out every fifteen minutes.
“Elderly women find it impossible to function due to the heat. But as the work is just for less than an hour or two a day, we are able to do it,” Sathya said.
Velvizhi, the principal scientist on the project, noted that the fisherwomen are not using the exhaust fans in the yard, which can help reduce the heat. “We are educating them on this, and it should be streamlined soon,” she said.
In many regions, including South Asia, women dominate the fish-drying workforce. For those who do not have access to nifty gadgets like solar-powered dryers, the work still remains both physically demanding and time-consuming.
Sathya had to send her children to boarding school because she was unable to find time to care for them. Valarmathi’s daughter often felt disheartened because she only saw her mother only at night. Indrakumar almost always sacrificed her sleep to prepare meals for her children before she started her day at 4 a.m.
But now that the fish-drying process is becoming automated, these women are finally reclaiming those lost hours to bond with their children and have a little more time to themselves.
