APA-Mbeya (Tanzania) The United States has unveiled a five-year programme to assist Tanzania to improve its food security by reducing post-harvest losses.
The pilot phase of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)-funded Tuhifadhi Chakula (Let’s Save Food) initiative targets farmers, food traders and processors in the Arusha, Mbeya, Morogoro, Njombe, Pwani, Tanga, and Zanzibar regions of Tanzania.
According to USAID Tanzania mission head Craig Hart, “by targeting and reducing food loss and waste, the USAID Tuhifadhi Chakula programme will increase food security, improve livelihoods, increase employment, and generate export opportunities for Tanzania – especially among women and youth.”
He noted that 40-50 percent of crops in Tanzania are lost between the field and the end market.
USAID’s Tuhifadhi Chakula programme would aim to cut food loss and waste in half, Hart said.
The US$24-million initiative was designed in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture and would be implemented by the Tanzania Horticulture Association in partnership with the Southern Agricultural Growth Corridor of Tanzania Centre.
JN/APA