How can your business offer an innovative solution to reduce post-harvest losses along the supply chain and ensure the retention of nutrients in nutritious food?

With approximately 800 million suffering from hunger and 2 billion suffering from nutrient deficiencies in low- and middle-income countries, a staggering amount of the world’s food nonetheless goes uneaten.

Estimates vary, but in Sub-Saharan Africa alone, somewhere between 30- 60% of food that is grown never reaches the plates of consumers. Much of this loss happens between when the food is harvested and when it reaches the market, a challenge known as postharvest food loss (PHL). Processing and value addition closer to the point of production reduces postharvest loss, ensures nutrient retention, and increases the volume of nutritious foods on the market.


Under this innovation area, the I2N Challenge is seeking for innovative solutions that aim to answer the following:


Loss Reduction

Adoption of proximate processing that aims to bring processing and value addition closer to the point of production e.g. modular factories, near- farm processing and mobile packhouses. Adoption of cold chain innovations at the last mile

e.g. near farm mobile pre-cooling, small- scale cooling boxes, packhouse units and solar- powered cold storage facilities.

Adoption of low cost solar drying solutions that offer a simple, cost-efficient method to prevent food spoilage in areas where the ability to distribute products is limited, and cold chain is lacking.

Adoption of new models to handle logistics 


e.g. stackable and reusable crates.

Development of postharvest loss monitoring technologies or systems


e.g. ethylene monitoring.