Clean Energy to Nourish a Continent: Unlocking renewable power for Africa’s food systems

31 August 2026. “Power the Plate: Energy for Nutrition” 

• Host/organiser: Welthungerhilfe (WHH), in partnership with GOGLA and the Agri-Energy Coalition. GOGLA lists it as a WHH-hosted side event, while WHH describes the session as being held in partnership with GOGLA.
• Focus: The session examined the connection between energy access, vegetable production and nutrition. It highlighted that African countries need to substantially increase vegetable production and consumption to achieve healthier diets, while high energy costs, post-harvest losses, irrigation constraints, cooling, storage and logistics can make vegetables less affordable. The discussion looked at how productive renewable energy, investment and partnerships can make vegetables more abundant, affordable and accessible.
• It also concluded with the launch of the Africa Vegetable Innovation Platform, linked to the #DoubleTheVeg ambition

1 September 2026. “Powering Agri-Food Systems Value Chains Amid a Global Energy Crisis”

• Hosts: GOGLA and SNV, as part of the Agri-Energy Coalition.
• Focus: This session took a broader look at how the global energy crisis is affecting Africa's agri-food value chains, from production and irrigation to processing, storage, transport and marketing. It explored how reliable and affordable energy can improve competitiveness, reduce food losses, strengthen rural livelihoods and accelerate food-system transformation.

2 September 2026. AFS Kigali. Powering CAADP: The Agri-Energy Nexus” session. 

• This session was hosted by SNV, GOGLA and AGRA and focused on integrating renewable energy and agriculture within the implementation of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP).

All these sessions reinforced the same message: affordable, reliable renewable energy is not simply an energy-sector issue but a prerequisite for productive, resilient and nutritious food systems.

Resource:

 

Clean Energy to Nourish a Continent: Unlocking renewable power for Africa’s food systems, a white paper co-authored with GAIN and SNV, looks at how renewable energy can be a vehicle for growth in the African food processing sector. 

Read the executive summary HERE and the full report HERE.

Summary

1. Africa must align clean energy transition with nutrition gains. Food and energy prices are closely linked. Energy inefficiencies in processing raise costs, waste food, and undermine food and nutrition security. Urgent, energy-efficient, and clean energy interventions are needed to improve the availability of nutritious foods and reduce spoilage.
2. African food processors are up to two times more energy intensive than their global peers. Outdated equipment, inefficient thermal systems, poor maintenance, and inadequate waste and heat recovery mean that processing one kilogram of produce can require nearly double the energy, reducing competitiveness. Most of the energy demand comes from thermal processes such as drying, frying, pasteurisation, roasting, and boiling, while electricity use peaks in milling, refrigeration, and pumping. Cold chain and refrigeration remain significantly underpowered. 
3. The processing and post-harvest stages offer a strong renewable energy opportunity. Processing consumes 42% of total energy in food systems and presents the strongest business case. Using Renewable Energy at this stage provides greater co-benefits, especially in terms of nutritious, perishable foods such as fruits, vegetables, eggs, and dairy, where solar photovoltaic (PV) adoption is already on the rise. 
4. Energy costs are a major business risk for small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) processors, accounting for 15%-22% of operating expenses. For small processors, even modest bills take a high share of revenue, threatening viability. Thin margins make them highly vulnerable to energy price shocks. 
5. Grid instability is disruptive and costly. Frequent outages, voltage fluctuations, and poor power quality cause equipment damage, downtime, and significant financial losses. Some processors pay USD 4,800 per year in penalties for poor power factor, while others lose USD 10,000 per year due to harmonics related trips. 
6. Fossil fuel lock-in undermines Africa’s agroindustrialisation and climate mitigation goals. Diesel dominates off-grid processing operations, while unreliable power drives greater diesel dependence. Biomass and firewood account for 18%-48% of fuel use in rural dairy plants and 70%-90% in fish processing, adding to emissions, deforestation, and health risks.

Implications for international research collaboration

1. Expand comparable cross-country evidence on energy use and efficiency in African food processing; the report notes important geographical and data gaps.
2. Develop and validate common energy-efficiency benchmarks across countries and value chains, building on the report’s Africa–global comparisons.
3. Jointly test and adapt renewable-energy technologies—solar, biogas, biomass and hybrid systems—to different African processing and climatic contexts.
4. Link energy research with nutrition and food-system outcomes, including nutrient retention, cold chains, food affordability and post-harvest losses.
5. Strengthen South–South and international knowledge exchange, combining research, demonstration hubs, technical training and peer learning to accelerate adoption and scaling.