Cold chain: Bangladesh may save "$2.5 billion a year" with US funding

 According to an analyst, Bangladesh loses 44% of its annual production of fruits, crops, and vegetables due to a lack of cold storage and transportation facilities.

Due to a lack of storage and transportation facilities, Bangladesh loses $2.5 billion annually as a result of 44 percent post-harvest losses of fruits, crops, and vegetables, which raises costs for customers.

The government is currently thinking about providing incentives to US companies who want to invest in Bangladeshi cold storage facilities.

The topics were covered on Wednesday at the Cold Chain Investment Conference 2024 in Dhaka, which was put on by the US Department of Agriculture's Bangladesh Trade Facilitation Project and the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority.

Salman F. Rahman, the prime minister's advisor on investment and private industry, stated during the program that in response to rising lending rates, the government was looking for measures to lower the interest rates on loans to companies in the industry.

He stated, "We learned from the US Embassy that American companies may have a unique opportunity to engage in Bangladesh's cold chain.

The conference's keynote speaker was William Fellows, executive managing director of LixCap, a company that offers investment solutions, blended financing, and business development advice services for emerging countries.

According to him, Bangladesh loses an estimated $2.4 billion annually as a result of 20–44 percent of its fruits, crops, and vegetables being destroyed. 

Based on Fellows, if Bangladesh can strengthen its cold chain, it might not need to import potatoes and onions. 

Additionally, he stated that by 2031, investments in the area might reach $440 million. In addition to preserving its agricultural products, he said, Bangladesh will benefit from growth in industries like packing and transportation. 

-ForeignCoverageBD