A third of the food currently produced never reaches our plates, and in the markets in which many of our supply chains operate, as much as 40% of food is lost during harvest, drying, storage, and transport. These are particularly sobering facts considering estimates that we'll need 50% more food by 2030 to feed the world's growing population.
Crop losses have a significant impact not only on the livelihoods and welfare of farmers and their families, but also on global food security when nearly one in ten people worldwide are undernourished. Read about some of our challenges and advancements in our latest annual report.
Olam strives to reduce the amount of post-harvest loss in our supply chains and Olam-managed farmer programmes. We work with public and private organisations to inform and advance this work such as WBCSD, Champions 12.3, and Sustainable Rice Platform.
Our programme to help rice farmers in Nigeria reduce post-harvest losses through mechanisation has improved yields and incomes, and reduced labour costs and GHG emissions.
The winners of the 2021 Olam Food Prize for Innovation in Food Security have developed a botanical rodenticide to help curb rats, which are responsible for significant crop loss in the field and during storage in Africa.
Cascara has long been a significant volume of waste, equal almost to the volume of coffee we produce. Our innovation team has utilised this by-product to create popular beverage infusions and concentrates.
Rich biodiversity of the Bynekere Estate contributes to Robusta and Arabica coffees. Previously poor post-harvest techniques have resulted in an inconsistent and lower-quality coffee.
A joint study with Wageningen University revealed the scale and impact of post-harvest losses in rice farming in Nigeria, and identified hotspots in the process as well as solutions.
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