Post-Harvest Opportunities

Effective post-harvest management is essential to realising the full value of the Australian sesame crop. ASIDA is working with industry partners to develop robust post-harvest systems that maintain sesame grain quality from farm gate to export market.

On-Farm Handling

Best-practice on-farm handling begins at harvest and covers:

• Harvest timing: Sesame must be harvested at the right stage of maturity to minimise shattering losses. A narrow harvest window (7–10 days) requires careful monitoring of crop maturity across the paddock.
• Grain moisture: Freshly harvested sesame must be dried to below 6% moisture content for safe storage. Forced-air drying or natural aeration drying in suitable conditions is recommended.
• On-farm storage: Clean, dry, sealed storage — including silos or super-sacks — is essential to maintain grain quality and prevent insect and moisture damage during storage.

Cleaning & Grading

Australian sesame must meet stringent cleanliness and purity standards to access domestic and export markets. Cleaning involves:

• Removal of foreign material (stems, soil, weed seeds) using aspirators and gravity separators
• Grading by size and colour to meet buyer specifications
• Achievement of Machine Dressed Sesame (MDS) standard — typically <0.1% foreign matter and <1% defective seeds

ASIDA is working to establish access to commercial cleaning and grading services in key growing regions to reduce the cost of post-harvest processing for Australian producers.

Food Safety & Quality

Australian sesame must comply with:

• Australian food safety standards (FSANZ)
• Import requirements of destination markets (including Japan, South Korea and the Middle East), which include testing for pesticide residues, mycotoxins, and allergen contamination
• Organic certification requirements where applicable

ASIDA encourages growers to maintain detailed records of crop inputs and post-harvest handling to support food safety documentation for export.

Domestic Processing & Value-Adding

Opportunities for domestic value-adding include:

• Sesame oil: Cold-pressed sesame oil commands premium prices in health food and specialty markets
• Tahini: Sesame paste is a high-demand ingredient in food manufacturing and food service
• Roasted sesame seed: Roasted whole and hulled sesame is used extensively in bakery, food service and retail
• Sesame flour: High-protein sesame flour is an emerging ingredient in gluten-free and functional food products

Export Market Access

Australia's primary sesame export markets are Japan, South Korea, the Middle East and South-East Asia. Key market access requirements include:

• Meeting importing country MRL (maximum residue limit) standards for pesticides
• Phytosanitary certification where required
• Compliance with labelling and packaging requirements of each market

ASIDA is actively working to build relationships with international buyers and to develop a commercial supply chain that connects Australian producers with global sesame markets.

For further information on post-harvest systems and export market access, please contact ASIDA.