Soybean drying systems in Togo
What the crop demands, what the country imposes, and what that means for capacity.
Togo has become the largest organic soy exporter in Africa, which is a genuinely unusual position for a country of eight million and one built entirely on documentation rather than on scale. The whole chain rests on being able to evidence what happened to each lot, and moisture is the number most often audited.
The situation in Togo
Lomé is the only natural deep-water port on this stretch of coast and the country has built an export economy around it. Togo has also become the region’s organic soy specialist, with a certified chain that reaches European feed and food buyers directly — a genuinely unusual position for a country of eight million, and one that depends entirely on documented moisture control.
Growing regions. the Maritime and Plateaux regions in the south, Centrale and Kara further north
What soybean drying demands
Soy for food and feed export is sold against a documented moisture specification, usually 12 % or below, and an organic certification chain that requires records rather than assurances. Drying is technically straightforward; what buyers are actually paying for is the evidence that every lot met the number.
Harvest calendar
October to December, at the end of the rains. Lomé port is close to the growing areas, so the interval between field and ship is short by regional standards.
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 | 10–12 % |
| Yield (fresh : dried) | 1.2 : 1 |
| Cycle time | 6–10 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 20 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 Togo
Togo’s organic soy sector generates a growing volume of husk, consistent and easy to feed. Cashew shell in the Centrale region.
- Base load. Soybean husk · Cashew shell · Palm kernel shell
- Supplement. Shea cake and shell · Cotton stalk · Corn cob
See all 27 fuels and their properties
Market and buyer requirements
European organic feed and food processors. Certification is the product as much as the bean is, and it is withdrawn on documentation failures rather than on agronomic ones.
Explore further
The systems that hold this profile
Other crops in Togo
Raw cashew nut · Shea · Pineapple · Maize
Soybean drying elsewhere
Frequently asked questions
How did Togo become the largest organic soy exporter in Africa?
On documentation rather than scale. The chain rests on evidencing what happened to every lot, and moisture — a documented 12 % or below — is among the most frequently audited numbers, so conditioning is part of the certification, not an addition to it.
What happens if a lot fails its moisture record?
The risk is to the certification rather than the individual lot, which is why it matters disproportionately. Certification is withdrawn on documentation failures, not on a single lot arriving at 13 % instead of 12 %, and rebuilding it costs far more than the conditioning equipment would have.
Is 20 t/day large for Togolese soy?
It is a serious aggregator, producing about 16.7 tonnes a day of conditioned bean at roughly 1.2 : 1 on a 6 to 10 hour cycle at 40–45 °C. High throughput and low ratio, so the chamber is sized for volume passing through rather than for water being removed.
Size a unit in Togo
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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