Over 40% of the produce and vegetables harvested in Africa for domestic consumption spoil due to a lack of refrigeration and adequate infrastructure. In addition to poor roads, which make transport from producers to markets even more difficult, this includes a lack of access to the electricity grid and the associated inability to refrigerate perishable goods.
It is not only the producers who suffer from this, but society as a whole: many farmers limit their production as the losses after the harvest wipe out the expected profit. At the same time, middlemen often profit from the weaknesses of farmers who do not have refrigeration facilities. This drives up the prices of local products, weakens their competitiveness, reduces farmers' incomes and makes African countries dependent on imports - think of the much-cited onion imported from Holland.
A man with a mission
‘We have to change that,’ thought Franz R. Exumé. As the son of an African-American missionary and a Haitian father, he grew up in the USA and Haiti during and after the era of ‘Papa Doc’ Duvalier. After studying economics and then theology, he worked in Liberia as a missionary for the United Methodist Church (UMC). He has travelled extensively in West, East and Southern Africa, working there and researching living conditions.
‘I saw challenges in agriculture and other sectors that could be addressed to improve the quality of life for many people in these countries by utilising our own resources, talents and ingenuity,’ he says. ‘So I felt compelled to find solutions that would enable us to solve our own problems.’
With this in mind, Exumé founded Vital Products and Service, Ghana Ltd. in 2022. The company markets and distributes innovative agricultural products and services that improve the quality of life of various population groups in Ghana and other West African countries and serve as a role model for global engagement.
Vital has set itself the task of offering substantial solutions to urgent problems with new technologies and products. The aim is to strengthen agricultural production and thus help the country to achieve food self-sufficiency and improve the quality of life of farmers, market women and other members of the food value chain.
SDG 2, 5 and 7 - An enterprise with impact
The still young company wants to set up and operate refrigerated containers - and thus fulfil several UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at the same time. The refrigerated containers will initially be set up in busy markets in Accra and will soon be spread across the entire country so that market women (SDG 5 Gender Equality) can refrigerate their fresh fruit and vegetables overnight and thus reduce food waste (SDG 2 Zero Hunger). Furthermore, the containers are used by fishermen to store fish and street vendors should also be able to cool their goods (especially drinks) in them so that they can offer cold drinks.
In future, the electricity for the refrigerated containers will be generated by a solar system, which will be installed and financed by EWIA; the corresponding contract was signed this week. Once again, EWIA is bringing affordable and clean energy (SDG 7) to Ghana.
It is planned to start with the electrification of two refrigerated containers next year. The total size of the two systems is 26 kWp solar with a battery of 50 kWh.
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