On May 25, 2015 at the Hotel Duke in Madurai, India, SUSTAIN Project formally concluded. It was attended by around 40 people from different parts of Tamil Nadu. Among the participants were farmers, companies, and Bayer and ASSIST representatives. During the ceremony, the farmers had the opportunity to speak on their benefits from the project. Not only did they explain the advantages and benefits they have received, but they even displayed the food materials that underwent solar drying for others to see.
SUSTAIN (SUSTainable Agriculture & INnovative Livelihood through Solar Dying and Cold Storage in India) Project, funded by DEG and implemented by Bayer MaterialScience and ASSIST in India, envisioned to implement systems that will increase the shelf life of the fruits and vegetables, thus increasing their value and promoting more efficient retailing which includes the introduction of the Cold Storage and Solar Drying technology. This enabled the farmers to increase their revenue and profit and at the same time also shall generate new livelihood out of farming and newly introduced technology.Despite its formal conclusion, it plans to continue on keeping and expanding networks with farmers and companies for further projects.
