CONTEXT India remains the second-largest producer of fruits and vegetables globally. However, the nation faces a severe paradox. Despite a significant rise in production, internal food security remains elusive. Post-harvest losses represent one of the primary obstacles, costing approximately USD 18.5 billion annually. The root of this crisis lies in a fragile and incomplete cold … Continued
Context Smallholder farmers in the Indo-Gangetic plains of northern India are severely affected by the agricultural and climate crisis, experiencing low and inconsistent incomes due to declining productivity. In rural areas, low-quality grid electricity encourages enterprises to adopt non-grid sources, such as polluting fossil fuels, for essential activities like irrigation and milling. Less than 25% … Continued
Context Agriculture is vital to the economies of many developing countries, with smallholder farmers, who make up the vast majority of the agricultural workforce, depending on it for their livelihoods. However, 30 to 40 percent of produce is lost post-harvest due to weak cold chain infrastructure, compounded by issues like limited energy access, maintenance challenges, … Continued
Context Your Virtual Cold Chain Assistant (Your VCCA) is a collaboration between the BASE Foundation and Empa, launched in 2021 to make Cooling-as-a-Service (CaaS) a practical and accessible solution for the agricultural sector. This pioneering model leverages decentralised, solar-powered cold storage facilities to help small-scale farmers and aggregators access affordable cooling solutions. However, establishing CaaS … Continued
Context Post-harvest loss is a major challenge in most low and middle-income countries. It severely impacts smallholder farmers and food security due to inadequate storage and transportation, amongst others. The lack of cold chain facilities, which are crucial for preserving perishables, further exacerbates this issue. In the case of horticultural produce, the losses go up … Continued
CONTEXT The agricultural sector, vital for millions of livelihoods and food security worldwide, faces a critical threat: climate vulnerability. While pre-harvest initiatives like drought-resistant seeds and irrigation are essential, they only address part of the challenge. In Africa, inadequate storage and transportation result in post-harvest food losses exceeding 30 percent, reducing food accessibility and cutting … Continued
CONTEXT Agriculture plays a vital role in the Nigerian economy, with the rural population being particularly dependent on the primary sector for their livelihood. 70 percent of Nigeria’s rural population are farmers, of which 88 percent are smallholders with less than 2 hectares of land. Yet, Nigeria’s agricultural sector faces significant risks due to a … Continued
CONTEXT In today’s warming world, cooling underpins the ability of millions to escape poverty and hunger, in particular in the agricultural sector. India is one of the world’s largest food producers. However, 25 percent to 35 percent of food that is produced is wasted due to lack of proper refrigeration and other supply chain bottlenecks. … Continued
CONTEXT The energy and land use sectors are responsible for the majority of greenhouse gas emissions in many Latin American countries. Approximately 40 per cent of emissions in the region are from agriculture, forestry and other land use sectors. The energy sector is also a major source, although it varies substantially from country to country. … Continued
CONTEXT In Costa Rica there are 45,870 livestock farms spread across the country, covering 35 per cent of the national territory. The livestock production system in the country in base on grazing, the average farm measures 40.7 ha and has a stocking rate of 0.9 AU5/ha. Of the total area, 5 per cent exists as … Continued