(Project Befriend)

A Comprehensive Program to Reduce World Hunger

 Through Post Harvest Technologies

The Millennium Development Goal (MDG) to halve hunger by 2015 is estimated by the United Nations’ Food & Agricultural Organization (FAO) to fall 200 million people below target.  Approaches beyond “business as usual” are necessary according Director-General Dr. Jacques Diouf of FAO.  This proposed program mobilizes appropriate science and technology to reduce poverty and hunger and promote sustainable agriculture and sound environmental management by more efficiently utilizing current resources. 

“Business as usual” means enhancement of agricultural production through fertilizers, pest control, traditional breeding and genetic engineering.  Protection and distribution of that production are not typically addressed and post-harvest food losses typically range between 20 and 60% due to physical, chemical, animal, insect and microbial losses.  Recovery of some of the existing food losses with post harvest technologies, defined as the entire collection of storage, processing (where approriate), protection, packaging and transportation practices which bring food products to the consumer, could be the needed addition to “business as usual”.  Combining agricultural production and post harvest intervention can provide sufficient food to meet the Summit goal to reduce hunger by 50% by the year 2015.  Poverty and ability to buy food is partially addressed.

Dr. Marsh has presented post-harvest perspectives at the World Food Summit:five years later, World Bank, local and national food institute meetings, two World Food Congresses and in numerous less developed countries.  During these travels he visited institutes that led him to develop this approach.  The overall goal is to create a coordinating entity within five years to form a self-sustaining worldwide post harvest food enhancement program. 

The Comprehensive Plan

Many countries recognize the opportunity to reduce food losses with post harvest efforts and support activities ranging from courses and research to dedicated post harvest institutes.  The institutes, specifically, have developed procedures and technologies to drastically reduce food losses.   Two such programs, one in Sri Lanka and one in Thailand, have the potential to recover almost 4 million metric tons of food, sufficient to feed over 10 million people for one year.  Unfortunately, these efforts are supported, performed and published locally.  Benefits are rarely recognized outside the country and many countries unknowingly duplicate efforts of others. 

The Comprehensive plan is to recognize and catalogue what is being done in individual countries to reduce post harvest food losses, identify programs, experts and technologies as well as impact on hunger reduction, and promote cooperation and technology transfer to accelerate these efforts.  A separate component is to compile a list of volunteer experts and their respective expertise into a Knowledge Resource Center (KRC) that will support technology transfer.

This program is separate from the Food Augmentation Program in that it builds on existing institutions whereas the Food Augmentation Program is designed for countries and regions which have no existing Post Harvest programs.

Please click Steps in the Plan for an outline of the Comprehensive Plan.