Ecozen’s portable solar-powered standalone cold room, called Ecofrost, is designed to help farmers store fresh produce till it reaches end consumers. It allows farm-level pre-cooling of fruits, vegetables, and flowers and increases the shelf life, allowing farmers time to find the right buyer and right price. Ecofrost has been fully designed and manufactured in India keeping in mind the needs of smallholder farmers and FPOs. Many FPOs and NGOs have achieved tremendous results by installing these solar cold rooms and one of those is the Shristi NGO in Odisha.
Shristi is a state-level organization that has been working in 5 districts of Odisha with an objective to enhance the livelihood of rural households by introducing low-cost, easy-to-access technology and community-led infrastructure. Recently they had installed Ecofrost units in the Keonjhar district of Odisha.
The Ecofrost solar cold room is changing the lives of tribal women of Odisha. It’s a matter of great happiness that during this pandemic, where farmers are facing challenges in selling their crop in the market, Women’s Producer Group of Harichandpur, Keonjhar being able to sell their vegetables at the right price. How are they doing this? By storing their produce in an Ecofrost solar cold room. It keeps their produce fresher for longer, allowing them to sell when the prices are right and reach farther markets. These women farmers were able to double their earnings per kilogram during the summer months.
