CassVita has developed an innovation to minimize post-harvest cassava losses thus improving income for farmers.
Cassava is grown by 20 million farmers in Africa, South America, and Southeast Asia. However, it has a shelf life of 2 days after harvest. Consequently, about 40% of crops are lost, resulting in an inability for the farming community to benefit from it, which leads to a significant loss in income. Globally, 93 million tons of spoilage are recorded annually (Naziri et al, 2014).
Minimising cassava spoilage could be a solution to alleviate poverty in farming communities as farmers would be able to monetize more of their harvest and therefore have more sustainable livelihoods.
SOURCE: Fund for Innovation in Development