By Ibrahim Ruhweza
Sandra Nabasirye, also known as the slay farmer, has been producing tomatoes and other vegetables to sell to different markets to earn a living.
Since 2017, she has continuously grown tomatoes on a large scale.
Nabasirye is one of the successful youth farmers who left her profession of teaching. Amidst the success she has attained from vegetable growing, Nabasirye is, however, challenged by lack of secure storage facilities.
This often exposes her harvested commodities to pests like insects, and birds. Exposure to these scavengers leads to significant volume loss, damage, and contamination.
However, in a breakthrough moment for the storage industry, a team of innovators has unveiled a cutting-edge storage facility that is set to revolutionize the storage system.
With its advanced security features and sustainable construction, this futuristic facility is not only a game-changer for individuals and businesses looking for a secure and reliable place to store their belongings but also a testament to human ingenuity and the power of innovation.
Kamlesh Samaliya, the vice president of business development exports from Eco-Frost (a smart solar-powered room), says the weakest part of affecting all vegetable farmers is handling post-harvests. And failure to understand new forms of technology.
This was unveiled last week at Fairway hotel.
“Without technology, farmers can hardly add value to commodities,” he says.
David Ebong, the managing director, says most farmers lose 40% of their produce due to inadequate knowledge. The most affected crops are cabbages, mangoes, tomatoes, carrots, and others. Such crops also get affected during the flowering stage.
Samaliya says the ecozen fridges can be charged for five to six hours and function for six days nonstop. Such fridges are solar-powered and are the best for farmers in remote areas.
The innovator notes that by using an eco-friendly solar-powered freezer, farmers can keep their perishable products for over six months. This can help them enter the market at their convenience to maximize profits.
Samaliya stresses that farmers tend to make losses when they all hit the market at once. Buyers fix their own prices, which affects most of them (farmers).
He suggests that the government ought to construct smart solar-powered cold rooms in every market to help farmers who cannot afford to purchase one.
This technology is already in over 10 African countries, including Kenya, Djibouti, Nigeria, and others. Samaliya says the technology can reserve or keep starting from two metric tons to 45.
Ebong says it’s been hard for cattle keepers to maintain their milk for a long time, and some dealers had thought of using formalin.
He understands that this revolutionary technology of conserving perishables like meat, milk, fruits, and flowers will help farmers advance their economies.
“It is difficult to avoid losses; prices drop during harvesting, but here you can keep vegetables for six months before selling,” he says.
“You can release systematically at your own pace and decide the price,” he adds.
Management
Samaliya says maintenance is easier since the technology uses artificial intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT). This means a farmer can control his or her harvests from any place without their actual presence.
What is solved?
Farmers tend to use generators, fuel, and electricity, which are not only expensive but also not eco-friendly because the smoke produced pollutes the air. With this technology air and noise pollution will be eliminated.
LEAD PHOTO CAPTION: Kamlesh Samaliya vice president of Business Development Exports ECOZEN addressing the journalist as David Ebong Managing Director Clean Energy Partnership for Africa Limited looks on. This was during a press conference on ECOZEN in Kampala on June 14, 2024. Photos by Godiver Asege photo
