The food-waste fighter

How Prof Olaniyi Fawole is saving Africa's harvests

- Jamaine Krige

In South Africa's largest commercial pomegranate packhouse in Limpopo, workers apply an invisible coating to thousands of fruits destined for export.

Made from cactus mucilage and fruit waste, the biodegradable coating may seem unremarkable but it's a powerful tool in reducing food waste and reshaping Africa’s agricultural future.

“Up to half of Africa’s fresh produce is lost after harvest, largely due to avoidable inefficiencies in storage, handling, and processing,” says Prof Olaniyi Fawole, this year’s winner of the NSTF-ARC Award for his pioneering work in postharvest science. “We don't just need to grow more, we need to protect the harvest.”

As founding director of the Postharvest and Agroprocessing Research Centre (PARC) at the University of Johannesburg, and SARChI Chair in Sustainable Preservation and Agroprocessing Research, Fawole is leading a shift toward climate-smart, resource-efficient food systems. As co-chair of the All Africa Postharvest Congress and Exhibition, he also helps shape continental strategies to reduce food loss.