MIT Solve

Solution Overview

Solution Name:

Solar Powered Cold-room Storage System

One-line solution summary:

Is an off-grid walk in food preservation storage Agric-Tech system that reduces high carbon consumption of food and improves food security.

Pitch your solution.

This agric-Tech system will solve the problems of: food wastage, poor storage facilities, food scarcity, malnutrition, carbon emission during food preservation, consumption of food preserved through carbon emission process, loss of farmers' income due to food spoilage and unemployment. HEDI proposes to solve the above problems using the Solar Powered Cold-room Storage System. When scaled globally, the solution will positively impact and change lives by improving food security and reduction in malnutrition, promotion of low carbon consumption of food preserved through carbon emission process by using alternative clean solar energy thus reducing climate change thereby maintaining a healthy environment. Increase in global economic GDP by eliminating farmers' income loss due to food spoilage. Creation of employment for women and youth thus enhancing empowerment.

Film your elevator pitch.

What specific problem are you solving?

About 815 million people do not have enough food to live a healthy, active life, and nearly 25 percent of people in developing countries are undernourished, according to the World Food Programme. To put it into even better perspective, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) estimates that the world produces enough food waste (about 1.4 billion tonnes) to feed as many as 2 billion people each year. This is roughly one-third of the global food supply.

Food is lost or wasted throughout the supply chain, from initial agricultural production down to final household consumption, according to the UN.

“Up to one third of all food is spoiled or squandered before it is consumed by people. It is an excess in an age where almost a billion people go hungry,” the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation has stated.

“Nigeria is a very large country, with 90 million smallholder farmers who do not have access to any form of cold storage. “We are home to the largest tomato production belt in west Africa, yet farmers are losing more than 50% of their crops due to a lack of cold storage.

What is your solution?

This Engineering Agric-Tech design is a post harvest walk in off-grid preservation storage facility that addresses the issue of poor storage facilities and food wastage. The solar panels mounted on the roof of the unit feed high-capacity batteries, which in turn feed the refrigerating unit. Farmers pay a flat daily fee for each crate of food stored and it is estimated that farmers have massively reduced their food losses and increased farmers' profitability

Who does your solution serve, and in what ways will the solution impact their lives?

The target population our solution serve are farmers and market traders who deal in agricultural products. Needs assessment conducted revealed that farmers are losing more than 50% of their crops due to a lack of cold storage and preservation facilities, which proportionally reduces the income generated from farm product sales, as a result they don't have enough food to feed their family nor enough income to carte for other family needs such as education, medication etc thus leading to malnutrition and health challenges. This tech will address the needs of: food storage, food wastage, income loss due to spoilt farm products, hunger and malnutrition. It will also provide employment to women and solve carbon emission during local food preservation, promote low carbon consumption of food preserved through carbon emission process by using alternative clean solar energy thus reducing climate change thereby maintaining a healthy environment. farmers would massively reduce their food losses and increased farmers' profitability.

Which dimension of the Challenge does your solution most closely address?

Improve supply chain practices to reduce food loss, scale new business models for producer-market connections, and create low-carbon cold chains

Explain how the problem, your solution, and your solution’s target population relate to the Challenge and your selected dimension.

This Tech solution relates to more than one Challenge dimension: it decreases carbon emission during food preservation, eliminates consumption of food preserved through carbon emission process by using alternative clean solar energy thus reducing climate change thereby maintaining a healthy environment. It improves supply chain practices to reduce food loss, scale new business models for producer-market connections, and create low-carbon cold chains. It creates employment which help ensure that caregivers retain their children in school thus promoting education thus improving learning for girls & women. It ensure food security, eradicates malnutrition and promotes healthy living.

In what city, town, or region is your solution team headquartered?

Uyo, Nigeria

What is your solution’s stage of development?

Prototype: A venture or organization building and testing its product, service, or business model

Who is the primary delegate for your solution?

Anyanwu Kennedy (CEO)