Africa needs new tech to reduce food waste: experts

Greater adoption of affordable and user-friendly technologies coupled with sensitization of smallholder farmers are key to reducing the menace of food waste in Africa, experts said Tuesday.

Experts and policymakers who met at a forum in Nairobi agreed that African countries should invest in appropriate technologies to combat the rising challenge of food waste and loss effectively.

Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries Willy Bett noted that technology adoption alongside strategic policy response would boost response to food waste across Sub-Saharan Africa.

"We must prioritize investments in infrastructure to facilitate deployment of technologies that would help farmers contain post-harvest losses," Bett said.

The Kenyan capital Nairobi will from March 28 to 31 host the inaugural African post-harvest losses congress and exhibition, to be attended by an estimated 500 delegates, to discuss effective ways of eradicating food loss and waste.

Bett said the conference is timely as African states rush to reduce the burden of food waste, whose impact on the economy and the environment is profound.

"There is no denying this continent has a huge reservoir of untapped technologies and innovations that can offer a durable solution to the crises of food loss and waste," said Bett.

Bett regretted that African countries have borne the brunt of food waste due to under-investment in modern storage facilities.

"It is critical for African governments to incentivize the private sector to invest in storage facilities that can protect grains from attack by pests and diseases," Bett said.

He announced that the government is in the process of waving fees to enable the private sector engage in full scale farming.

Food waste and loss are directly connected to the rising burden of hunger, poverty, diseases and ecological depletion affecting many African countries.

Mamadou Biteye, Managing Director of Rockefeller Foundation's African Region Office, said eliminating food waste will have spin-off effects on the continent's food security, human and ecological health.

"African countries should invest in better storage facilities and agro-processing industries to reduce post-harvest loss of key staples and fresh produce," Biteye remarked.

Biteye observed that the permanent solution to the problem lies in getting proven and simple technologies to small-holder farmers to help create new paths to market their crops.

He announced an initiative that will be undertaken towards reducing losses in mango, tomato and cassava and maize in Kenya, Nigeria and Tanzania respectively.

He said that up to half of these crops are lost to inefficient harvesting, storage, processing and transportation to market.

"Food loss and waste squander limited land and water resources besides increasing harmful greenhouse gas emissions," he said. Endit