Not only is solar energy necessary to consume food, but also throughout food systems to produce, preserve and process it. All In Trade Foundation seeks to
implement market-based sustainable energy approaches that strengthen food assistance in off-grid areas, especially in the rural areas of Uganda.
The use of solar energy in agriculture will considerably enhance livelihoods, enabling access to irrigation, cooling, drying, and other agri-food processing
devices. Despite the suitability of these regions for solar power and the potential to improve living standards, many barriers still hinder end-users from adopting this clean energy, among others, the lack of information and access to finance.
Solar photovoltaic energy will be used to power pumps in irrigation systems, improving agricultural yields and saving costs for other fuels like diesel. It will
also be used to power refrigerators, overcome the problem of electricity shortages, which interrupt the cold chain, enhance access to cooling equipment
in ‘off-grid’ regions, and reduce post-harvest losses.
Solar thermal energy will be used in agri-food processes like drying. As opposed to sun-drying, solar drying avoids contamination of the harvest with
impurities from the ground and increases energy efficiency. The latter can be enhanced by using photovoltaic energy to power artificial aeration systems.
