Energy Efficient Rural Food Processing Utilising Renewable Energy to Improve Rural Livelihoods

The World Health Organization already estimate that nearly 60% of the world population is malnourished and unless serious measures are not taken to address this then the situation will be exacerbated further. A lot of effort has quite rightly focussed on increasing food production but this is dependent on increased use of valuable resources. The minimisation of losses in the food chain will not only increase the quantity and quality of produce but also reduce energy, water and land use. Postharvest food losses are approximately one third of the total world yield and can be up to 50% in some developing countries.

The use of fossil fuels has allowed a greater number of people to be fed and to ensure that the numbers of malnourished are not even worse. Developing countries have high population growth and are increasingly using fossil fuels in food production to meet demands. Energy input is required across the entire food chain and it is estimated that 7-10 calories are required in the production of 1 calorie of food. This is primarily from fossil fuels which will increasingly be more expensive and post-harvest losses indirectly contribute to increased greenhouse gas emissions and climate change. It is therefore essential that technologies and practices adopted to reduce post-harvest losses are energy efficient and integrate effective renewable energy solutions such as biomass, solar PV, solar thermal, wind turbines, micro-/pico-hydropower.

In sub-Saharan Africa significant losses are as a result of a number of factors which include insufficient drying, inadequate storage, insufficient cooling and poor transport - all of which rely on high levels of energy input. Decentralised, distributed food processing supported by distributed energy supply can not only improve food security but also provide employment and income generation in rural communities. The local processing of food enables better storage and easier transportation, longer shelf-life, reduced seasonal supply effects, and produces products with added value.

The project aims to provide research which will support rural community business models for low and renewable energy input into food processing which minimise post-harvest loss and waste.

The proposed project will bring together the research capabilities and expertise of staff at Newcastle University, Kassel University and a number of leading African universities to form an international mutually beneficial, multi-disciplinary collaboration. This collaborative team has been designed to ensure the important challenges of tackling rural poverty and food security can be successfully addressed through high quality research, stakeholder engagement and long term capacity building in developing countries.

The key objective for the project impact will be use international engagement to focus on the challenges which can support the utilisation of clean, renewable energy through the integration of technical solutions within a social context in order to reduce food losses and improve the long term economic situation for the rural community, both individuals and SMEs. This engagement will enhance existing UK-Africa research relationships, build new links with and between African universities/NGOs, and strengthen the competitiveness of the Higher Education Institutions (HEI).

Impact will be achieved through the identification of key beneficiaries, clear communication and engagement strategies, collaboration and exploitation. The workpackages developed will address the identified challenges and the research teams will work with each other and other stakeholders to achieve two way dissemination. The multi-stakeholder network will ensure researchers expand their knowledge base in this important field. All research results and data generated by the project will be made 'open access' and disseminated through a variety of mechanisms including stakeholder engagement and stakeholder events, planning of pilot schemes, co-authored project reports, dedicated website, research papers and new collaborative project plans. New outcomes from the collaborations will be presented at workshops and conferences.

The key research findings from this 3-year multidisciplinary research project will have a number of important technological, economic and societal impacts as well as a wide range of potential beneficiaries including rural communities and SMEs in Africa, Governments and policymakers, other researcher and society.