What are some partnership examples aimed at improving food security?
We have many examples, including Africa Improved Foods (AIF) in Rwanda, which is producing relief foods and foods to address malnutrition in Rwanda and sub-Saharan Africa. AIF’s premise is to support African countries so they reach a level where they no longer need international support and can be economically self-sustaining using local capacities. Improving food security requires efficient food production at an industrial scale. And if I look at the food parks that we have built around the world in the past few years, they hugely contribute to that. Food parks, such as those we developed with customers such as Carrinho in Angola, or NSPO in Egypt produce in high volume, dropping costs of food and increasing accessibility. Carrinho’s vision is to be the driving force for Angola’s food and nutrition self-sufficiency, and with its current food park, they produce food to cover the needs of 15 million people, that’s nearly half of the population. That’s an incredible impact on driving food security at scale.
Through our long-standing collaboration with Partners in Food Solutions (PFS), a non-profit aiming to strengthen food security, improve nutrition, and increase overall economic development across Africa, we support food entrepreneurs in African countries with the expertise of our employees, who volunteer to work on PFS initiatives.
We have also joined forces with several Swiss industrial companies, ETH Zurich, and Ashesi University in Ghana to develop a Master’s program for engineering students from sub-Saharan Africa. The partner companies, including Bühler, support with funds and scholarships, and build relationships with students who will later be highly-skilled local engineers.