Sesame drying systems in Mali
What the crop demands, what the country imposes, and what that means for capacity.
Sesame has expanded fast in Mali as an export crop with a short cycle and a reliable Asian buyer, grown widely in Ségou, Koulikoro and Sikasso. Like Burkina, the quality problem arises at aggregation: seed from many smallholders is combined at different moistures and the consignment then grades on its wettest fraction.
The situation in Mali
Two quite separate agricultural countries share one border. The south around Sikasso is humid, green and grows mango, cotton and cereals; the inland delta and the Sahel run on livestock and river fish. Both are a long way from a port — Dakar and Abidjan are each a multi-day haul — so anything sold beyond the region has to be stable at ambient temperature before it moves.
Growing regions. Sikasso and Koutiala in the south, the Niger inland delta around Mopti
What sesame drying demands
Sesame is a conditioning job rather than a drying one: the seed comes off the field near its target already, and the task is to bring a whole lot evenly to 6–8 % without cracking the seed coat. Buyers reject on free fatty acid and on foreign matter, both of which track how the seed was dried and handled.
Harvest calendar
October to December, after the rains end. The timing is favourable — the crop is harvested into the dry season — but threshing is done on shared ground and the seed collects grit.
The working campaign window as the trade runs it. It shifts a fortnight either way with the rains.
Process parameters
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Drying temperature | 40–45 °C |
| Final moisture | 6–8 % |
| Yield (fresh : dried) | 1.2 : 1 |
| Cycle time | 4–8 h |
Sizing starting points from ordinary processing practice, not a validated recipe for your product. Confirm against your own intake and your buyer’s specification.
Worked sizing example
For a unit taking 12 tonnes of fresh product a day, at a yield of 1.2 : 1:
Illustrative figures calculated from the yield and campaign window above. They size a conversation; they do not describe any existing installation.
Fuel available in Mali
Cotton stalk from the Koutiala and Sikasso basin is the main resource. Rice husk from the Office du Niger is abundant but very ashy — blend it.
- Base load. Cotton stalk · Shea cake and shell · Rice husk
- Supplement. Corn cob · Groundnut shell · Sesame stalk · Dried mango peel
See all 27 fuels and their properties
Market and buyer requirements
Asia, principally China and Turkey, for oil and confectionery, purchased against moisture, free fatty acid and foreign-matter specifications.
Frequently asked questions
What moisture do sesame buyers specify?
Generally 8 % or below, with 6–8 % the working target. The cycle is short — 4 to 8 hours at 40–45 °C — because the seed arrives close to specification already; the job is evening out a lot, not removing a great deal of water.
Why is aggregation the weak point?
Because a consignment grades on its worst fraction. Seed from many smallholders arrives at different moistures, and combining them without a conditioning step at 40–45 °C means one delivery above 8 % can pull down a whole container’s free fatty acid result.
Is sesame worth a chamber on its own?
Rarely — the October-to-December window is only about 90 days, on a 4 to 8 hour cycle. It works best as an off-season load for a chamber bought for something else, which in Mali usually means the mango line idle from August or the shea line idle from October.
Size a unit in Mali
Tell us your daily fresh volume and target output, and we will size the chambers, the burner and the fuel available around your site.
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