Mozambique Cold Storage Technology

In Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), food availability is directly related to reducing food losses and waste in addition to improving supply chains. Post-harvest losses in SSA stand as the highest in the world.  

Mozambique’s agriculture sector contributed to 24% of GDP to the economy and provided means of income to more than 70% of the population in 2018. However, post-harvest losses exceeded 30% of output and are pinpointed as the main cause of alarming levels of food insecurity.  Contributors to post harvest loss in Mozambique includes long distances between harvest and distribution points, the lack of cold storage as well as poor transportation. Cooling and storage of crops require an intensive supply of energy which cripples adequate cold chain infrastructure to small-scale farmers who lack capital and electricity supply.

On the other hand, the Government of Mozambique is fully committed to transforming smallholder farmers into sustainable entrepreneurs, by allocating 10% of Government expenditure budget to the sector.  In February 2020, the President of Mozambique, President Filipe Nyusi, launched the SUSTENTA Initiative, a program supported by the World Bank, which aims to integrate rural households into sustainable agriculture and forest-based value chains. The initial grant amount is valued at $60 million which will support farmers with training, financing and improve supporting services.  Furthermore, Mozambique’s promising mining and gas sectors along with urbanization rise and growth of a middle class fuels demand for local agriculture produce along with improvement for advanced cold chain networks.

There is a growing demand for companies that offer cold storage technologies for small scale production including the following solutions:

• Passive/Evaporative cooler
• Absorption refrigerator
• Solar grid refrigerators
• Pre-cooling and cold rooms
• Pack houses and automated ripening chambers

For more information, contact office.maputo@trade.gov.