Making A Difference: Turning Food Waste Back Into Healthy Snacks

Share This!

Food waste is a huge problem in the United States, as well as many other countries around the world. One African company is changing that.

Would you be surprised to learn that despite the millions of people starving in sub-Saharan Africa (one of the poorest regions on the planet), up to 40% of their local food production goes to waste?  It’s true – up to a year’s worth of food (equivalent to billions of dollars) for 48 million people is simply wasted due to poor infrastructure and improperly managed supply and demand.

Mavuno Harvest said enough is enough, and began looking for a solution that would solve both of these two opposite problems at once (food waste as well as hunger).

After researching the problem for 10 years, (founder) Phil Hughes landed on a solution: He’d cut and dry the excess mango (and other fresh fruits like pineapples, papaya, bananas, and jackfruit) and sell it to an international market hungry for organic, fair trade–certified snacks. In 2011, Philadelphia-based Mavuno Harvest was born and has been growing ever since.

In Hughes’ view, “snackers make a difference with every bite.” With the increased demand, “farmers are able to feel confident about their fruit, grow more, and find suppliers to help finance the equipment used to dry it,” explains Hughes. The dried-fruit market has brought more jobs, steadier employment, and village improvements to local farming communities. And the premium these farmers earn for sticking to fair trade practices is actually going back to the community in best way possible….

To learn more about how Mavuno Harvest turns would-be food waste into fresh snacks and incredible opportunities for those who need it most, check out the video at the link below.

Visit Thrive.com to learn more….

Photo Credit: Mavuno Harvest

 

Share This!