WORLD FOOD PRESERVATION EDUCATION FOUNDATION CORPORATION
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Mission Statement
The World Food Preservation Education Foundation, a 501(c) (3) public charity, was formed to provide scholarships and support for graduate students from developing countries who seek to combat postharvest food losses. Through its work, the foundation seeks to help avert future crises due to food scarcity. One-third of the food harvested worldwide is lost before it is consumed, enough food to feed 2 billion people a year. The problem of food loss is most acute in developing countries, where currently as much as half of harvested crops are not consumed—largely because of inadequate infrastructure for food preservation, storage, and transportation. Wasted food also wastes energy, water, and labor. Yet the vast majority of our agricultural research funding continues to be spent on the production of food rather than saving the food we’ve already grown. The World Food Preservation Education Foundation works to help correct this imbalance by investing in young people from countries where food loss is most acute.
About This Cause
Donations to the foundation will provide scholarships to students from emerging economies to pursue M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in the postharvest preservation of food. It will also support scientific research into culturally-appropriate, low-cost, non-toxic and environmentally sustainable postharvest food preservation techniques at institutions affiliated with the World Food Preservation Center, LLC . This center is comprised presently of ten major research universities and a research institute—located in six continents—which have committed to expanding their existing graduate programs to combat food losses. A Sustainable Long-term Strategy Food insecurity can lead to political upheaval and violence, and these risks will increase as we place further demands on natural resources. Current estimates suggest the world’s population will grow by a quarter by 2050. Multiple studies have indicated at the present rate, our ability to produce enough food will fall short of demand even when accounting for increased yields. The World Food Preservation Foundation strives to mitigate this problem of food scarcity with a long-term strategy for preventing food losses. Your support of the foundation can fund scholarships, scientific research, and the construction of an open-access website that will present accessible information for the postharvest preservation of food. Scholarships: The foundation believes that the sustained reduction of food losses in the developing world will require the expertise and initiative of the people who live there. Accordingly, scholarships provided by the World Food Preservation Foundation will be available to M.S. and Ph.D. candidates from developing countries who commit to return to their native countries after graduation for at least five years. The scholarships seek to minimize or eliminate the student’s education costs to attend a university or research institute affiliated with the World Food Preservation Center LLC. Expressions of support and interest from scientists and students from developing countries for the center’s educational model can be seen here . Young scientists trained at a World Food Preservation Center institution will be able to return home to start their own academic research, education, and extension programs. They will also be able to develop industries to preserve food that are specifically adapted to the needs of local farmers and markets. Research: The World Food Preservation Foundation will fund research into food preservation techniques that are tailored to the specific needs of local economies. Because of the lack of a continuous power grid in many developing countries, the universities affiliated with the World Food Preservation Center LLC will conduct new research on solar refrigeration. To reduce dependence on toxic synthetic pesticides, the center will help develop biologically-based postharvest technologies. Schools affiliated with the center will also adapt recent advancements in active and intelligent packaging of food for application in developing countries. An example of a postharvest preservation innovation designed for low-income countries is Purdue University's improved cowpea storage project. Food Safety: Because of poor sanitation and food handling practices in developing countries, food borne illnesses are a major problem. The World Health Organization (WHO) has estimated that 2.2 million deaths occur each year because of diarrheal diseases whose pathogen can be food borne. Data from WHO show that diarrheal illnesses are a significant cause of mortality in children under five years old in six world regions. Multiple other food borne diseases and aflatoxins are having a major impact as well. Graduates of “Sister” Universities of the World Food Preservation Center LLC will receive an advanced education in food safety. Upon returning to their native counties they will be able to establish food safety programs that assess and control food borne diseases in their country. As developing countries increase their exportation of food, added requirements are being made by the importing country that food be certified as pathogen free. Graduates from “Sister” Universities of the World Food Preservation Center LLC will be able to assist their governments meet these requirements. An Open-access Website: The World Food Preservation Education Foundation is developing an open-access website that will serve as an accessible and comprehensive clearinghouse of information related to postharvest food preservation. This “Virtual” World Food Preservation Center will catalog and archive research academic research into the preservation of food. It will provide distance-learning courses for students who are unable to attend a World Food Preservation Center “sister” university, or for those wish to obtain the prerequisite knowledge before applying. The site will also serve as a communication hub for graduates of the World Food Preservation Center LLC institutions once they return to their native countries. Not least, the site will develop and publish clear and relevant information for students, researchers, teachers, administrators, industry and farmers worldwide. Human Capital A recent study by the International Food Policy Research Institute found that every dollar spent to reduce postharvest losses in the developing world could result in $13 in societal benefits. The World Food Preservation Foundation believes that by investing in young people who live in the countries where food loss is most acute, that we will see a durable return on investment for generations to come—both in food security and in social stability. Dr. Charles L. Wilson, the foundation’s chairman, spent decades as a research scientist at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. He worked with multiple scientists and graduate students from emerging economies, and he found the most rewarding part of his work was seeing young postharvest scientists return home and create programs that will continue generationally. The World Food Preservation Foundation is an extension of that work. The directors of the foundation have agreed not to take a salary. Except for a small overhead to administer the funds, donations will go directly to the foundation’s projects. We are grateful for your consideration.