State Department pursues post-harvest losses to improve global food security
February 26, 2013 | 04:54 PM
By JERRY HAGSTROM
With nearly one-third of the food the world produces wasted due to post-harvest inefficiencies, the Obama administration is making a major push to improve storage and transportation facilities in developing countries to achieve global food security.
Robert Hormats
“The scale of post-harvest food loss is tragic,” Undersecretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy and the Environment Roberts Hormats said last week at a State Department conference titled “Food Security and Minimizing Post Harvest Loss: Markets, Applied Research and Innovation.”
“Beyond the threat to food security, post-harvest losses adversely affect farmers and consumers in the lowest income groups,” Hormats said in a speech to government officials, nongovernmental organization leaders and executives from companies that provide post-harvest equipment and services.
“Post-harvest food losses are a waste of valuable farming inputs, such as water, energy, land, labor, and capital,” Hormats added.
Reducing post-harvest losses could also reduce the pressure to produce more food to feed a world population of 9 billion by 2050.
While most food security initiatives have focused on raising productivity through higher yields, crop intensification and expanded crop acreage, “One of the surest — and arguably most affordable — ways to feed more people sustainably is to ensure that the food already produced is not lost or wasted between the farm and the table,” said Jose Fernandez, the assistant secretary of State in the Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs.
The good news about this situation, Hormats said in an interview, is that the technologies to solve many of these problems have already been developed and that there will be opportunities for American businesses to provide post-harvest equipment and services.
But he also noted that from the State Department perspective “their profits are not the main benefit — they are the facilitators.”
While paying for the systems to avoid losses is obviously an issue in developing countries, the Obama administration, Hormats said, is taking several steps to help address the problem:
“This is a great opportunity to make some profits and do some good. That’s why my bureau is involved,” Fernandez said. (See story on current efforts below.)
But Hormats pointed out that the problem varies from country to country and that there is no one-size-fits-all solution.
Among the differing problems, he noted:
Throughout the developing world, Hormats said, inefficient transportation due to lack of roads or poor quality transport vehicles poses many challenges for moving fruits, vegetables, and other perishable food from farm to market. Refrigerated vehicles are also impractical.
One of the big problems, he added, is financing for smallholder farmers and cooperatives.
“Many of the technologies needed to address post-harvest loss are not expensive, but, in fact, they do require financing,” Hormats said. “They do require credit. If farmers are not able to invest in adequate drying and/or storage equipment, their ability to potentially reduce post-harvest loss will be limited.”
Hormats said that in his travels around the world he has begun to see some improvements. India’s decision to open its retail sector to encourage foreign investment was motivated, in part by a desire to build modern food supply chains and develop cold storage infrastructure. But Hormats also said in the interview that India’s “intentions are great but its actions are not commensurate.”
“It’s high time to make solving the problem of post-harvest food losses an urgent global priority — and to make such losses a thing of the past,” Hormats said.
With nearly one-third of the food the world produces wasted due to post-harvest inefficiencies, the Obama administration is making a major push to improve storage and transportation facilities in developing countries to achieve global food security.
“The scale of post-harvest food loss is tragic,” Undersecretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy and the Environment Roberts Hormats said last week at a State Department conference titled “Food Security and Minimizing Post Harvest Loss: Markets, Applied Research and Innovation.”
“Beyond the threat to food security, post-harvest losses adversely affect farmers and consumers in the lowest income groups,” Hormats said in a speech to government officials, nongovernmental organization leaders and executives from companies that provide post-harvest equipment and services.
“Post-harvest food losses are a waste of valuable farming inputs, such as water, energy, land, labor, and capital,” Hormats added.
Reducing post-harvest losses could also reduce the pressure to produce more food to feed a world population of 9 billion by 2050.
While most food security initiatives have focused on raising productivity through higher yields, crop intensification and expanded crop acreage, “One of the surest — and arguably most affordable — ways to feed more people sustainably is to ensure that the food already produced is not lost or wasted between the farm and the table,” said Jose Fernandez, the assistant secretary of State in the Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs.
The good news about this situation, Hormats said in an interview, is that the technologies to solve many of these problems have already been developed and that there will be opportunities for American businesses to provide post-harvest equipment and services.
But he also noted that from the State Department perspective “their profits are not the main benefit — they are the facilitators.”
While paying for the systems to avoid losses is obviously an issue in developing countries, the Obama administration, Hormats said, is taking several steps to help address the problem:
- The State Department is encouraging other countries “to remove bottlenecks and unlock business investment.”
- The U.S. Agency for International Development is paying for some projects through its “Feed the Future” program.
- The Obama administration is part of the New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition that was launched at the 2012 G-8 Summit at Camp David.
“This is a great opportunity to make some profits and do some good. That’s why my bureau is involved,” Fernandez said. (See story on current efforts below.)
But Hormats pointed out that the problem varies from country to country and that there is no one-size-fits-all solution.
Among the differing problems, he noted:
- In sub-Saharan Africa, about 4 billion dollars worth of grain is lost every year due to waste along every step of the food production chain from harvest and handling to storage and processing to packing and transportation. This is more than the total value of food aid sent to the region over the last decade, and 4 billion dollars worth of grain could feed at least 48 million people.
- In Southeast Asia, a small-holder maize farmer may lose up to 30 percent of his crop each year to mold, rodents, and insects due to a lack of dry storage equipment.
- In India, a vegetable farmer may lose the same percentage of her crop due to deficiencies in cold storage infrastructure, such as facilities to sort out the food and store it and keep it fresh.
- In Vietnam, a rice farmer may lose grain at multiple steps between harvest and market.
Throughout the developing world, Hormats said, inefficient transportation due to lack of roads or poor quality transport vehicles poses many challenges for moving fruits, vegetables, and other perishable food from farm to market. Refrigerated vehicles are also impractical.
One of the big problems, he added, is financing for smallholder farmers and cooperatives.
“Many of the technologies needed to address post-harvest loss are not expensive, but, in fact, they do require financing,” Hormats said. “They do require credit. If farmers are not able to invest in adequate drying and/or storage equipment, their ability to potentially reduce post-harvest loss will be limited.”
Hormats said that in his travels around the world he has begun to see some improvements. India’s decision to open its retail sector to encourage foreign investment was motivated, in part by a desire to build modern food supply chains and develop cold storage infrastructure. But Hormats also said in the interview that India’s “intentions are great but its actions are not commensurate.”
“It’s high time to make solving the problem of post-harvest food losses an urgent global priority — and to make such losses a thing of the past,” Hormats said.
