From Waste to Wealth: South Asia’s Food Systems at a Turning Point

South Asia is home to nearly two billion people, yet it loses up to 40% of its food before it reaches consumers. With rising climate risks, persistent undernutrition, and a growing youth population, the region faces a critical challenge and a powerful opportunity.

Recently, the regional platform South Asian Policy Leadership for Improved Nutrition and Growth (SAPLING) held a special session at  World Food India 2025 in New Delhi with support from the Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI). Representatives from Bhutan, India, Maldives, and Sri Lanka attended, continuing the momentum from SAPLING's June 2025 gathering in Sri Lanka.

The session, themed "From Waste to Wealth: Transforming South Asia’s Food Systems for the Future," brought together leaders from public, private, and civil society sectors to spotlight how food processing and circular economy solutions are reshaping the region’s agri-food systems.

The message was clear: turning waste into wealth is not just possible, it’s already happening.

Bhutan and Maldives: Policy Innovation and Circular Models

Bhutan loses half of its fruits and vegetables annually due to weak post-harvest systems. The country has revised its national food and nutrition security policy to include food loss assessments and cost-sharing subsidies for farmer groups, covering up to 70% of storage, transport, and packaging expenses.

In Maldives, food waste constitutes 60% of municipal waste. The government is integrating circular economy models into urban planning and food systems policy, exploring biotech and valorization solutions to reduce pressure on waste management systems and improve food security.

India: Women-Led Agribusiness and Processing Innovation

India processes only 12% of its agricultural output, far below the global average of around 30-40% of total agricultural output. But grassroots innovation is changing that.

In Rajasthan, Nilgiri Farmer Producer Organization is connecting over 750 women. Their custard apple processing center generated ₹6.6 million in turnover and ₹2 million in profit, demonstrating the power of collective action.

S4S Technologies, India focuses on empowering women smallholders through solar-powered food processing and market linkages. Their modular solar dryers reduce drying time from 6 days to 6–8 hours, and the company works with 5,000 women farmers turned entrepreneurs in India and Ghana. Women farmers gained access to finance (interest rates reduced from 31% to 6%) and market linkages, resulting in annual additional income of $400–$2,000. S4S prevented 100,000 tons of food waste annually and generated $45 million in revenue, impacting 300,000 farmers.

“Food processing is not just about agriculture production. It’s about rural transformation.”

— Paul Procee, Acting Country Director for India, World Bank

Sri Lanka: Leadership-Driven Transformation

“Let us seize this moment. Let us move from waste to wealth, from challenge to opportunity. Sri Lanka stands ready to lead and learn, to partner and innovate, for a future where no harvest is wasted, no youth is left behind, and every citizen enjoys the benefits of a sustainable food system.”

— Hon. Wasantha Samarasinghe, Cabinet Minister of Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development, Sri Lanka

In Sri Lanka, food loss is estimated at 40% annually. Minister Samarasinghe emphasized the country’s shift from a self-sufficiency model to a market driven model. The country is moving beyond primary production to develop value-added services in agribusiness - logistics, processing, marketing, and technology. By investing in digital platforms and AI-driven solutions, Sri Lanka is creating new opportunities for youth and marginalized groups, ensuring that the agribusiness sector is globally competitive. The government is investing in climate-resilient crops, cooperative commercialization, and cold chain infrastructure to reduce post-harvest losses and improve market access. The Integrated Rurban Development and Climate Resilience Project supported by the World Bank is a key platform to leverage investments for smallholder-led agribusinesses.

Miller Rajendran from SenzAgro Solutions, Sri Lanka leads a precision agriculture tech company serving 29,000 farmers in Sri Lanka and 10 other countries. Their low-cost and scalable digital technologies empower smallholder growers and youth, by improving productivity, reducing post-harvest loss, and increasing incomes. A $13 per farmer investment yields 7x return per transaction.

Private Sector Innovation: Redefining Waste

Across the region and beyond, entrepreneurs are turning food loss into opportunity:

GreenPod Labs in India uses plant-based packaging to extend shelf life by 40–60%, preserving up to 25,000 tons of produce monthly. This is without cold storage.

Vietnam Food valorizes shrimp byproducts, processing nearly 100,000 tons annually with a 95% extraction rate and 80% reduction in water use.

“Minimizing food loss and waste is central to building a resilient, sustainable, and inclusive food system.”

— A.P. Das Joshi, Secretary, Ministry of Food Processing Industries, Government of India

Financing the Future

New financing models are helping scale what works:

India’s National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) offers open-ended loans at 8–8.5% interest and a two-year moratorium for green projects. Their $25–30 million Carbon Fund supports innovations that traditional banks often overlook.

Public-private partnerships are making cold chains, storage, and processing infrastructure accessible to smallholder farmers across the region.

The Way Forward

South Asia’s food systems are undergoing a quiet revolution. Through regional collaboration, policy innovation, and grassroots entrepreneurship, the region is moving from waste to wealth - creating jobs, improving nutrition, and building resilience.

Behind the scenes, platforms like SAPLING help connect the dots, bringing together governments, innovators, and communities to scale solutions that work. The transformation is underway. The time to accelerate it is now.