 | Case Studies of Neem Processing Projects Assisted by GTZ in Kenya, Dominican Republic, Thailand and Nicaragua (GTZ, 2000, 152 p.) |
 |  | 4. Case studies of small-scale semi-industrial neem processing in Kenya, Thailand, the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua |
| | 4.4 Small-scale commercial neem production in Nicaragua |
| | 4.4.4 Economical assessment of COPINIM's processing plant in Nicaragua |
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4.4.4.1 Technical and economic description of the neem processing plant
The following products are manufactured and offered by Copinim, Nicaragua:
Table 51: Neem products offered by Copinim, Nicaragua
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Neem bases pesticides |
Unit |
Price/unit in C$ |
|
Neem alcoholic extract (Nim action 04 SL) |
1 l |
120 |
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Formulated neem oil, CE 80 |
1 l |
110 |
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Neem cake (Torta de Nim) |
2 kg |
60 (or 30/kg) |
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Veterinary products |
| |
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Neem paste |
125 g |
15 |
Key data
The plant is based in Managua, Los Brasiles km 15 carr. Nueva a Leon, Nicaragua.
The site is comprises 28,000 sq m, of which 2,000 sq m is covered with a roof.
The building has a size of 150 sq m and includes an office, store room, sales room and processing unit.
Owner: the area and building was given to Cieets by a German NGO on condition that COPINIM Cooperativa de Produccion de Insecticidas Nim, (Copinim) is allowed to use them. It is unclear whether the processing unit belongs to the NGO Cieets or to Copinim.
Staff:
In November 1999 two permanent staff were employed by the plant.
Other labourers are employed according to the need.
Invested capital:
Copinim owns the following machinery:
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3 depulpers, capacity: 250 kg/h, value: |
US$ 3,000 |
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1 pump, value: |
US$ 2,000 |
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1 dryer, capacity: 30 kg/h, value: |
US$ 6,500 |
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4 small depulpers, capacity: 60 kg/h, value: |
US$ 2,000 |
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1 thresher IMEF, capacity: 60 kg/h, value: |
US$ 1,000 |
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1 thresher "Hans Ulrich", value: |
US$ 500 |
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1 thresher, capacity: 50 kg/h, value: |
US$ 700 |
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1 hammer mill, capacity: 100 kg/h, value: |
US$ 1,500 |
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600 drying sieves, value: |
US$ 2,000 |
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1 fine sieve (1.5 mm), value: |
US$ 400 |
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1 Monfort oil expeller, capacity: 2.5 l/h, value: |
US$ 4,000 |
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1 stirring unit, capacity: 150 l, value: |
US$ 200 |
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1 van "KIA", value: |
US$ 2,000 |
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1 bus, value: |
US$ 3,000 |
Capacity
A description of the processing steps (including wet depulping process) of Copinim's neem plant:
Table 52: Processing steps and capacity of Copinim's neem plant
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Process |
Potential capacity of the machinery |
Capacity used in 1998 |
Potential capacity of 1 labour/staff |
Real capacity in 1998 |
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Selection of fruits |
8 tonnes/day |
3 tonnes/day |
150 kg/day |
150 kg/day |
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Fruits after -ripening |
6 tonnes/day |
3 tonnes/day |
6 tonnes/day |
3 tonnes/day |
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Depulping |
10 tonnes/day |
5 tonnes/day |
1.5 tonnes/day |
1.5 tonnes/day |
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Washing |
5 tonnes/day |
2 tonnes/day |
1.5 tonnes/day |
1.5 tonnes/day |
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Drying |
1.5 tonnes/day |
0.8 tonnes/day |
0.4 tonnes/day |
0.4 tonnes/day |
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Threshing |
1 Ton/day |
0.5 tonnes/day |
0.5 tonnes/day |
0.5 tonnes/day |
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Grinding |
1 Ton/day |
0.3 tonnes/day |
0.5 tonnes/day |
0.5 tonnes/day |
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Formulating oil |
300 l/Day |
300 l/day |
150 l/day |
150 l/day |
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Alcoholic extraction |
100 l/Day |
100 l/day |
100 l/day |
100 l/day |
Oil pressing is carried out by another company which charges Copinim per unit.
The technology applied and quality of the neem pesticides match the requirements of the local market.
Constraints
An analysis of neem processing in Nicaragua revealed the following constraints:
· Copinim is not able to perform any azadirachtin analysis
· The capacity of the oil expeller is not sufficient.
· The alcoholic extraction of the neem cake is not optimal.
· Marketing and distribution are not effective enough.
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