The FoodLAND Open Platform serves as a central repository for sharing and exchanging research and development outputs from the FoodLAND project. It offers access to a variety of materials, including reports, protocols, recommendations, methods, and results of the 23 open technological innovations that have been developed, tested, and validated throughout the project’s duration.

The platform showcases several innovative farming and food processing tools and systems designed to enhance agro-biodiversity and food diversity. These include technologies for primary production, such as agroecological intensification practices, biodegradable mulching, hydroponic systems, precision irrigation/fertigation, precision protection systems, precision harvesting systems, new legume local varieties, and aquaculture systems. For primary processing, innovations encompass smart storage systems and solar drying systems, while secondary processing technologies feature bio-based packaging processes, fish smoking, salting, fermenting techniques, and extrusion and baking methods. All these technologies are open, so the guidelines and training materials are provided to facilitate their implementation by interested stakeholders.

In addition to technological innovations, the platform highlights the 26 new food products developed through these technologies, detailing their nutritional properties and the specific innovations utilized in their production.

Finally, the platform provides complementary materials like protocols, health intervention studies, behavioural analyses, and policy recommendations. Users can access guidelines, training materials, and additional information to facilitate the replication of these innovations.

We invite you to explore the platform and take advantage of the research-backed innovations available. Whether you are a farmer, food processor, policymaker, or researcher, you will find useful resources to support more sustainable and efficient food production. You can also discover the new food products developed within the project, designed to enhance nutrition and diversify diets.

Join us in bringing these innovations to life by implementing the available technologies and promoting healthier, more sustainable food systems. Visit the FoodLAND Open Platform today and be part of the movement towards improved food security and nutrition!

Speaking at the conclusion of the project, Senior Lecturer and Fish Farming and Fishing Specialist Dr. Renalda Munubi from SUA said that the main goal of the project was to empower the breeders by teaching them the best methods of fish farming and providing them with practical education so that they could use them in their daily environment.

Dr. Renalda reported that they initially provided farmers with theoretical and practical training, which enabled them to raise, harvest, and sell fish. The training made the farmers realize that they did not need to rely only on natural fish from rivers, but they could raise them themselves to increase their income and improve their families’ nutrition. In addition, at the project’s conclusion event, farmers had the opportunity to visit SUA and learn in practice how to raise fish effectively, make good fish food, and build modern ponds.

Dr. Renalda added by saying that the production of fish food in a personal way helped the breeders to remove the big challenge they faced in the purchase of fish food. “The ability to produce fish food itself removed the dependence of the breeders on fish food sellers, which increased their profit and improved production,” said Dr. Renalda.

On their part, Mariam Bakari and Festo Liguduliaka, residents of Mshikamano Village, Mang’ula B Ward, Ifakara Council, Morogoro Region, who benefited from the project, thanked SUA for providing them with this important education. They said that the knowledge they gained enabled them to improve fish farming in their families and raise their economic status.

Finally, the Tanzanian project coordinator, Prof. Susan Nchimbi Msolla, said that FoodLAND’s main goal was to improve the nutrition of Tanzanians by providing them with education about the use of various foods to build better health.

In several processed food products, such as snacks and composite flours, the ingredients have been reformulated to make them healthier and more nutritious, and therefore more beneficial to consumers than the low-nutrient snacks currently on the market. Partners reported positive feedback from stakeholders and users who tested the foods they developed, showing good potential for several products to replace their equivalent but less nutritious counterparts.

The day ended with different workshops and interactive activities where partners shared different transversal aspects of the project, such as the dissemination and exploitation of technological innovations, nutritional recommendations and novel food products, as well as the lessons learned and future plans for the Food Hubs and the overall gender impact of the project, especially in the Food Hubs. These sessions were lively discussions and information flows, reflecting the amount of knowledge generation and interaction that has taken place over the four years of FoodLAND.

The objective of the three-day meeting was to share the final results reached in the different research areas covered by the project: consumer research, farmer research, technological innovations, and novel food products. After bilateral meetings in the first, the second day focused on presenting project insights, key results in consumer and farmer research, and thematic table discussions about the technological innovations developed and validated in FoodLAND.

Regarding consumer research, different partners have highlighted the results that emerged in the work on consumers’ behaviours, diet quality, marketing strategies conducted, and nutritional recommendations that emerged during the project.

As for farmers’ research, insights were presented about the nutrition responsiveness of farming systems, the willingness to adopt innovations of farmers, the randomised control trials, the current and future farm household food needs, as well as the gender perspective in the adoption of the innovations by farmers.

Finally, the thematic tables were arranged according to the different phases of the food supply chain, namely farming management systems, farming and food primary processing systems, and packaging (secondary processing). A space was also created for farmer research discussions.

Participants were really engaged in the meeting and the presentations, and very interesting discussions and reflections took place during the whole day.

The event was held in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania bringing the innovators together with 29 other best teams of young innovators from 10 universities across Tanzania to present their creative and innovative business ideas. The teams at the boot camp were separated into groups, technical team and manufacturing team. SUA team was recognized as a manufacturing team. The journey began with the boot camp that provided in depth training on unique value proposition, channels for different product, customer segments, branding, revenue streams of the product, customer relationship management, compliance and business formalization and leadership.

Along with the training 50% of the score were rated from the coachers depending on the daily activities performed at the camp. The competition looked to be challenging because some of the young innovators were already making money from their ideas making a great impact in the communities. Also, each participant at the boot camp had the eager to win the prize so more efforts were observed making the competition feel intense and challenging. The rest of 50% scores were obtained at the national pitch event from the selected judges. The training gave participants the necessary skills to refine their business ideas and communicate them effectively to the judges.

After a week of training, one student from SUA, Christina Josephat was able to prepare a pitch deck under the supervisions of the Starthub coachers (Mr. Arnold Mgaga, Mrs. Laura Mgaga, Miss Cynthia and Mr. Brian) but also from her teammate Frank Thomas and mentors from FoodLAND Project (Prof. Camilius Sanga, Dr. Suleiman Rashid and Dr. Emmanuel Ndetto) based on the problem, solution, market size, traction, competitors, call to action and team members. During the National Pitching Event, several judges who were to select winners were founders from outstanding companies such as Goldenpot, NeuroTech Africa, Ipf and #iLink Software. Several other angel investors, investors, capital venture, stakeholders, partners and customers were also invited to attend the event, and listen to the groundbreaking ideas. It was an exciting moment for business idea competitors but also a moment full of eagerness whether their ideas are going to be attracted by the pitched innovation judges.

Ms. Christina Josephat pitched the solution to reducing postharvest fruit losses at local markets by offering affordable, portable and ecofriendly, smart cooling solution known as Charcoal Blanket. It was installed with different sensors to measure different parameters automatically.  The smart storage facility reduces temperature storages without electricity that extended the shelf life of avocados from 3 to 9 days. The team of 4 judges recognized the potential impact of this innovative idea and were impressed with the technology, though great concerns were on why charcoal from tress and size of the facility being small. The answer for this question was that we promoted the use of charcoal from waste materials.

After the pitching session, Christina’s team was honored to win the second place taking home TZS 4,000,000 among other 20 teams who were also finalists. Also, there were capital venture investors willing to work with the team (Miss Haika Mtei, Founder Goldenpot). The pitching competition, which donated 80 million shillings in funding top 20 businesses, was a major steppingstone in our entrepreneurial journey. It has reaffirmed their commitment to finding innovative solutions to food insecurity and supporting local traders. They were grateful for the opportunity and motivated to continue working toward impactful change in Tanzania.

We would like to extend our gratitude to Starthub Africa Tanzania in collaboration with UNDP Funguo Tanzania and Westerwelle Startup Haus Arusha for empowering students with essential skills and fostering a vibrant innovation ecosystem. Also, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to FoodLAND Project and mentors (Prof. Camilius Sanga, Dr. Suleiman Rashid and Dr. Emmanuel Ndetto) for their invaluable support and guidance throughout this journey, they have been supportive leaders in accomplishing this great dream and being noticeable as growing business that impact the community. Special thanks to Vuyisille Factory located at SUA Mazimbu, Morogoro under the supervision of Mr. Isdory Otto Isdory, Mr. Bilo Augustine Bilo (Factory Engineer) for their support on the innovation and space. But also, we recognize SUA innovation Hub Coordinator, Dr. Doreen Ndossi for giving us the opportunity to showcase our idea and supporting us from the ideathon competition to National Pitch event that was held in Dar es Salaam. Indeed, it was a life changing experience for both of all.

For more information, visit the below news articles:

https://millardayo.com/shilingi-milioni-78-zatolewa-kwenye-miradi-20-ya-kibunifu-ya-biashara-kwa-wanafunzi-kutoka-vyuo-vikuu-10-nchini/

https://www.ippmedia.com/the-guardian/news/local-news/read/20-student-led-businesses-win-competition-receive-over-80m-2024-12-09-122701

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DE4FP7fNKz2/?igsh=dHlmNmRsN3ppZ2pt

https://www.bbc.com/swahili/live/c33ddgze4ydt?post=asset%3A9819c6c7-5d8f-4877-b900-e1f86aca8a40#asset:9819c6c7-5d8f-4877-b900-e1f86aca8a40

https://dailynews.co.tz/student-led-businesses-ideas-awarded-80m/

These final randomised controlled trials (RCTs) are the second phase of an earlier trial, carried out one season earlier in the bean growing season, to measure their preferences for adopting one of the new bean varieties developed in FoodLAND.

FoodLAND was presented to visitors, who showed great interest in sustainable practices, innovation and technology, capacity building and the youth and women’s engagement in the project. Our Tunisian partners from the Institut National Agronomique de Tunisie: Jamila Ben Souissi Emna Soufi and Raouia Ghanem visited the project’s stand as well, where they met AquaBioTech’s staff and exchanged views about the project, the work of INAT and the planned activities.  

As the majority of the visitors were Tunisians, they were eager to find out more about FoodLAND’s aquaculture research in their country, focusing on stocking the dams in the area of Jendouba (Bouhertma) with fingerlings of mullet and the training of local fishermen, in order to increase the efficiency of fisheries and aquaculture in that area.   

Researchers want to send “a huge thank you, to all those who stopped and showed interest in our project and its progress”.

Smallholder farmers from the rural area of Fernena, located in the Jendouba governorate of Northern Tunisia, where one of FoodLAND’s food hubs is based, are facing increasing challenges. Rising cultivation costs, including fertilizers, planting materials, and pesticides, are compounded by the growing increasing water scarcity.

In this situation, alternative farming solutions are urgently needed to enhance the resilience of local agricultural activities. Vegetable cultivation offers a promising opportunity for smallholder farmers in this region, as they have higher added value and profitability. However, the hilly terrain in the Fernena area presents challenges for successfully performing this pursuit, aggravated by water scarcity, salinization and soil property ownership challenges. This is where FoodLAND’s innovative solutions come in.

The adoption of closed-loop hydroponic systems may be a suitable solution for sustainable agriculture in areas like those described above. By replacing traditional growing media (soil) with a recirculating water solution, the use of water in these hydroponic systems can be significantly reduced. The cost of setting up such a system was also taken into account, as it was considered crucial to develop low-cost solutions to ensure they were accessible to smallholder farmers.

Additionally, community gardening systems were also explored as an alternative solution, since they are considered appropriate for areas like Fernena, as they can provide social and economic benefits to local farmers. Farmers can share investment costs, facilitating technology adoption, and increasing the market value of their produce. The introduction of water-saving technologies, such as drip irrigation and mulching, further supports the sustainability of these gardens.

Soilless and water-recirculating hydroponic system

The FoodLAND team working on this approach tried out different options to find the best-fitting hydroponic system. On the one hand, they worked with different growing media, using growing substrates or entirely eliminating soil and suspending roots in nutrient solutions. On the other hand, they tried different format systems, including wooden boxes elevated from the ground and a circulating system made of aligned plastic bottles to check which of them made the most efficient water use. A gravity-fed irrigation system delivered nutrients to the plants, and both arrangements had drainage features that let excess water flow back into the irrigation tank, creating a closed-loop system.

FoodLAND Hydroponics system Watch on YouTube

During the workshop, they were congratulated by the representative of the principal of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CAES) at Makerere University, as well as the university’s Vice Chancellor for their impressive work with the project to provide applicable solutions to everyday challenges.

Members of the different working groups explained the work carried out both in the development of the technologies and their dissemination; they reported, for example, that these technologies have been disseminated to over 9 districts and that several farmers have visited the demonstration site.

Regarding the novel food products delivered, Prof Nakimbugwe presented the developed products, including sweet potato noodles, composite flours, and snacks/daddies. These products are highly acceptable hence they would open up new markets and contribute to higher dietary intake of protein and micronutrients such as zinc and iron.

The workshop also included testimonies by farmers, who shared their experience of implementing some of the innovations developed in FoodLAND, as well as by a representative of the Ministry of Health, who emphasized the importance of testing and general body checkups.

The workshop was closed by Steven Tibyejuka, representative of the Minister of Agriculture who stressed that FoodLAND activities are in line with agro-industrialization for job and wealth creation for Ugandans.

About 30 people attended the meeting, where together with FoodLAND partners, some district officials also contributed with their remarks. Rashidah Mutebi, the Town Clerk of Butalangu, emphasized the importance of adding value to farmers’ produce and sharing knowledge and ideas, stressing that all ideas are welcome, with no right or wrong. She advised farmers to document their progress and emphasized the importance of cooperation between farmers and researchers.

Dr. Aliga Simon, Nakaseke District Health Officer, addressed nutrition-related issues. He appreciated the FoodLAND project for including components to address non-communicable diseases mainly caused by lifestyle factors. He noted that Nakaseke is a food hub with nutritious food, but despite the availability of food, many people are suffering from malnutrition. Dr. Aliga stressed the importance of educating the community about food availability, as well as the role of farmers as the voices of the community. He suggested that the local government should select one day for the people of Nakaseke to exercise as a community. Furthermore, Dr. Aliga called for a partnership with FoodLAND to educate people in their communities and help them with issues related to malnutrition.

Wandera James, Deputy District Production and Management Officer, encouraged the youth of Nakaseke to work hard and engage in agricultural activities. At the same time, he addressed the challenges faced by the farmers, such as limited market access due to the perishable nature of the crops they grow, for example, eggplants. However, due to FoodLAND’s efforts, eggplants can now be solar-dried and stored for up to two years, demonstrating the concept of value addition.

Muhoozi Michael, Deputy Resident District Commissioner: He requested FoodLAND to collaborate with a farm in Katooke where only organic foods are grown, to ensure the sustainability of nature-sustaining agricultural practices after the conclusion of FoodLAND project activities. He stressed the need to educate farmers on using everyday solutions to address pests and diseases and strengthen the voice of the farmers, thus urging farmer groups to form a cooperative.

FoodLAND partners Baraka Price and Amos Asiimwe/Julius Byamukama offered the presentation of technological innovations and novel food products produced in the project, such as precision irrigation and fertigation systems, precision harvesting systems, and solar drying.

The session about nutritional recommendations was presided by Josephine Kisakye. She advised eating a variety of locally available foods from all main food groups, limiting processed meat, red meat, and full-fat milk. Encouraged farmers to stay healthy, mind their nutrition, leave some of their farm produce for their home consumption and not sell everything.

Statements by a FoodLAND participant

Ms Jane Nakya, a farmer who received training from FoodLAND, installed an irrigation system at her farm. She always had poor harvests due to drought, but after the training, “I was motivated to install an irrigation system at my farm. Luckily I went to the district offices and found an ongoing irrigation project with a matching grant. I was asked to pay just 25% of the costs and the government pays 75%. I paid the money, and the system was installed on my farm. For now, the system feeds 2.5 acres of my farm. The biggest advantage is that I am no longer affected by drought”.