36 solar-powered food dryers arrived to Zugdidi, Georgia

This year, Mondo will deliver 108 food dryers to its partner communities in Georgia, Kenya and Uganda, supporting their livelihoods and reducing food waste. The first ones arrived to Georgia this October.

“Recently, Georgia has been in the media mostly due to its politically complex situation, but climate change hasn’t disappeared either. Stronger winds, higher temperatures, and new plant diseases directly affect the livelihoods of the Georgian people,” said Mondo’s environmental programme leader, Egle Küngas. Thirty-six food dryers are being given to women in the Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti region who, for one reason or another, have fewer opportunities. Mondo’s partner in Georgia, Association Merkuri, supports single parents, internally displaced people, and victims of domestic violence. In this project, we are supporting women with fewer opportunities, many of whom are engaged in agriculture.

Before receiving the food dryers, women from the Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti region completed training on how to use the dryers. The training was conducted by Ingrid and Margus Kullerkupp, representatives of the company GlobeDry, which made the dryers, and Mondo’s environmental programme leader, Egle Küngas. The food dryers caused much excitement during the training. Over the two training days, the women learned how to use the dryers, handle food, and gained new knowledge about environmental issues and climate change. The day ended with an entrepreneurship training session, as the newly dried fruits can later be sold, providing an additional source of income.

Ten of the food dryers were equipped with USB phone chargers to stay connected during power outages. There were several power outages during the training sessions, but fortunately, the dryers are completely autonomous, so work did not stop. In the future, Association Merkuri will be responsible for the food dryers in Georgia. Now, we quite literally await the fruitful results of the project!

Mondo’s project “Increasing food security and reducing food waste with solar food dryers in Uganda, Kenya, and Georgia” is financed by the Republic of Estonia. Read more about the project. 

The installation of food dryers in Georgia is part of Mondo’s environmental programme, which you can support by purchasing a charity gift.