Kenyan start-up FreshBox is introducing sustainable refrigeration to East African produce markets with its solar-powered, walk-in cold rooms. FreshBox’s flagship unit is a solar-powered, walk-in cold room that can hold over 2100 kg of fruits and vegetables, and can reach temperatures below freezing point.
Disrupt-africa.com quoted co-founder Thomas Schmedding as saying: “By increasing the longevity of a fruit or vegetable’s selling period by up to 950 per cent, our cold storage system can provide more consistent revenues to the retailers in produce markets and provide more consistent availability of nutritious produce.”
FreshBox came about after its current CEO John Mbindyo noticed that market vendors were forced to restock their supply regularly due to excess produce spoiling after two or three days. By expanding upon proven cold storage technology, he designed a way to provide cold storage for retailers in markets at an affordable rate.
“We put our idea to the test with a pilot project in a Nairobi fruits and vegetables market. To assess the demand for a large-scale cooling unit in similar markets across Kenya, we first purchased a used household refrigerator. After we installed the refrigerator in the market, the unit was fully booked within a day. Over the course of the next three months, the pilot refrigerator achieved a 100 per cent utilisation rate,” Schmedding said.
