Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) has published the methodology for its open-source Agricultural Cold Chain Analysis and Prioritization (AgCAP) tool, designed to identify communities most likely to benefit from cold storage interventions. The tool aims to support integration of agricultural cooling into national electrification and agricultural development planning.
AgCAP uses geospatial, multi-criteria analysis at settlement level, combining openly available datasets on agricultural production, climate, market connectivity, electrification status, food security and socio-economic conditions. Its composite indicators identify cooling potential across export, national and fresh-market value chains for crops and fisheries.
According to SEforALL, up to approximately 40% of perishable harvested products in Sub-Saharan Africa are lost to spoilage before reaching markets. AgCAP is intended to help government planners incorporate cooling into Integrated Energy Plans, rural electrification plans and value-chain development strategies, while development organizations and private-sector companies can use it to pre-screen potential project sites.
SEforALL stresses that AgCAP provides first-level prioritization rather than final investment decisions. Its indices indicate cooling potential rather than quantitative demand, and site-level technical, market and financial assessments are still required to establish the viability and specific cold storage needs of individual projects.
The tool is openly available on GitHub, including model components for preparation, analysis and a local interface through Jupyter notebooks. A browser-based AgCAP Insights application is also available for non-technical users in selected countries. Development of AgCAP and preparation of its methodology document were supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation.
