African Food Systems Transformation Collective: Food Processing, Packaging and Storage

Demand for processed food is expected to account for
approximately 75% of the demand for staple foods, due to
lifestyle changes and increased human populations leading
to increased demand for food in the 21st century (Conway
et al. 2019; Badiane et al. 2023). Huge potential therefore
exists for small-scale farmers and producers to process
indigenous food to meet this demand. However, they
experience challenges, which include: struggling to comply
with food safety regulations due to limited resources and
knowledge; limited access to adequate storage facilities;
and poor storage conditions, which can lead to spoilage
from microorganisms or other contaminants. Overreliance
on traditional methods of storage may not be suitable for
modern food safety standards. This is further worsened
by limited resources for packaging and labelling, due to
financial constraints which limit the processors’ ability to
invest in high-quality packaging and labelling materials.
Lack of standardisation, inconsistent packaging and
labelling undermine consumer confidence and trust.
Recommendations to philanthropies include the need for
direct funding for capacity building, technological support,
financing research and innovation and local processors.
This would realise the potential of indigenous food
processing, storage and packaging, embracing circularity,
and incorporating technology in these processes. There is
also a need to identify local processing technologies that
are working well, for them to be improved using modern
scientific knowledge for credibility. The development
of new markets for local processed food products and
lobbying for a regional labelling approach for local
processed products are needed. This brief provides a
summary of the indigenous/local food products that can
be processed, packaged and stored, the challenges faced,
and recommendations to philanthropists.