Research project
Development of Sustainable Edible Coatings for Perishable Tropical Food Crops Preservation: Option for reduction of post-harvest losses through the value chain
- Start date: 1 May 2023
- End date: 1 August 2024
- Funder: Innovate UK
- Value: £152,715
- Partners and collaborators: Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomosho, Oyo State, Nigeria
- Primary investigator: Dr. Idolo Ifie
- Co-investigators: Dr Chikere Nkwonta, School of Food Science, University of Leeds
- External co-investigators: Mr Abdulhakeem Olasupo
Nigerian's agricultural productivity of fresh produce is significantly hampered by the lack of effective postharvest management technologies, leading to 30%-80% postharvest losses. Agro Park Development Company Limited (APDCL) experiences losses of up to 33% of all horticultural produce. Forthcoming changes in legislation aimed at reducing agrochemical-based preservatives is a key driver for new and sustainable postharvest management solutions.
APDCL is a farm-to-fork business and has a vision to lead innovation in agri-food technologies to grow local and international markets. This KTP aims to develop and commercialise novel natural (plant-derived) edible biopolymer coatings for preserving a variety of fresh plant produce as a sustainable and effective solution to improving agricultural productivity, reducing food loss, and value-addition along the supply chain. This aligns with SDG2, SDG5, SDG12, and SDG15. Focus will be on lab-scale testing with a view to scaling and commercial production.
Capacity building of small-medium scale farmers (mostly women) involving tailored education will ensure technology adoption. The combination of polymer chemistry, food science, and agricultural engineering will embed new scientific capability to the company. Biopolymer preservation, although tested in developed countries, is new to Nigeria and Africa and applicability in varied climatic conditions will be unprecedented.
Impact
The biopolymer formulation has been optimised and a final product developed called Freshsaver to be applied to horticultural crops to increase shelf life