Rome: A New era of Post-Harvest Loss Prevention

Abstract

As the world’s population continues to grow, existing methods of food production are becoming increasingly stressed and incapable of meeting food requirements. Most research to solve this problem focuses on increasing the yields of existing crops. However, an increasingly large proportion of research is being done in the area of Post-Harvest Loss (PHL) prevention. Post-harvest loss is defined as any food that fails to be consumed or used after being harvested because of spoilage or lack of a market for the product. In October 2015, an international conference was held in Rome, Italy with the intention of addressing the substantial problem of PHL, and what can be done to mitigate it. The conference’s organizers sought to develop a working “roadmap” that can be used to direct funding and research. This would enable collaboration between governments, the private sector, Non-Governmental Organizations, and academia. Ideally, this collaboration would allow for the implementation of appropriate, scalable technologies, as well as education that would dramatically decrease the world’s food waste.