The Food Science and Technology (FST) team at MUST on March 9, 2023, presented an ambitious project to start food processing as part of entrepreneurship and industrialisation as espoused by Malawi’s long term development blueprint, Malawi 2063.

The team comprising technicians, lecturers, HoD and Executive Dean for the Malawi Institute of Technology, showcased sample products to the university’s Vice Chancellor, Professor Address Malata.

The products included mango, pineapple and guava juices plus tamarind and guava jam.

According to one of the FST lecturers, Dr Barton Navicha, the idea was to showcase potential and capacity within the section for agri-products value chains and ask the university management to support their industrialisation initiative.

“If you recall, just a week ago, we had a training on the production of fruit juices and jams targeting students so they could put theory into practice. However, the section has plans to go into serious production of various agri-food products. The aim is to add value to our agricultural products, contribute to Malawi’s import substitution initiatives, create jobs and bring forex,” he said.

To achieve this, Dr Navicha said the section needs to set up a factory with modern equipment and that needs financial injection and support from the university or partners.

In response, Professor Malata was excited and asked the university’s Directorate of Finance and Investments to support the initiative.

“The team is also coming just days after we met the Minister of Agriculture, Honourable Roza Mbilizi who challenged universities to go into industrialisation, agriculture mechanisation and seed production and assured us that the ministry is ready to support with financial resources. So this is one of the things we will push for support from the ministry as we also look into agriculture mechanisation and seed production,” said Professor Malata.

Meanwhile, the Vice Chancellor encouraged the FST team to continue with production at small scale level so as not to lose the momentum and also to build a customer base for the products.