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Asia-Pacific // Market
Reinventing the Food Cold Chain in the Philippines A UNIDO-led three-year initiative, which aims to bring energy-efficient refrigeration to the country, is seeking industry contributions for an innovation hub and demonstration projects. — By Ilana Koegelenberg and Michael Garry
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ne of the most pressing issues in developing countries is a faulty food cold chain, which results in massive food waste and underserved communities. To address that problem in the Philippines, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), together with the Depar tment of Environment and Natural Resources of the Philippines (DENR), are spearheading a new initiative aimed at applying environmentally friendly, energy efficient refrigeration throughout the cold-chain – from farms to packing houses to coldstorage warehouses and finally stores – while advancing food safety and security. The three-year project, which started implementation in October, is called the “Global Partnership for improving the Food Cold Chain in the Philippines." It is funded by US$2 million from the Global Environment Facility (GEF), with US$25 million in co-financing (in-kind, grants and loans) contributed by other organizations. UNIDO is the implementing agency, working with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources of the Philippines (DENR), and shecco (publisher of Accelerate Magazine) as one of the key executing partners. For the Philippines project UNIDO aims to “establish a global partnership” including national and international private-sector companies and financing institutions, said Franziska Menten, Project Coordinator, Department of the Environment, UNIDO, who spoke about the project on October 16 at ATMOsphere Europe in Warsaw, Poland, organized by shecco.
Jan Dusek, shecco
Accelerate Magazine // November - December 2019