Food Aid Packaging Innovation Project RFI Supporting Document April 2024.pdf

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Food Assistance Packaging Research and Innovation Project:

A sustainable food packaging solutions innovation associate award

Scope of Work

U.S. Agency for International Development

Washington D.C., April 30, 2024

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I. Introduction

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) asserts in its Multi-Sectoral Nutrition Strategy that optimal nutrition is fundamental to achieving the agency's broader mission of ending extreme poverty and promoting resilient, democratic societies while advancing countries' national security and prosperity (USAID Multisectoral Nutrition Strategy). Effectively packaged nutritious food is crucial for saving lives, building resilience, increasing economic productivity, and advancing development. Recognizing the pivotal role of effective packaging as a value chain enabler in achieving this grand mission, over the last decade, USAID and its partners have collectively invested a significant amount of resources and prioritized food packaging as a pertinent domain of work. The agency has also embraced sustainable approaches through its climate change strategy (USAID Climate Change Strategy), aiming to guide humanitarian and development work by urging all of USAID—across all regions, programs, and operations—to contribute to strengthening development outcomes through direct climate change program investments and by integrating climate change throughout USAID programming, learning, policy dialogues, and internal operations. The agency's climate-sensitive agenda includes sustainable packaging solutions that minimize food losses, protect the nutritional value of foods, and reduce the carbon footprint of humanitarian and development work.

Despite food being a core component in fighting extreme poverty and promoting resilient communities, almost a third of the food produced for human consumption is wasted across the supply chain. In 2019, 931 million metric tons of food available to consumers ended up in the waste bins of households, retailers, restaurants, and other food providers. With harsher supply chains in the humanitarian world and in developing countries, food losses are even higher. Sustainable packaging solutions can reduce these staggering food losses and packaging waste. Effective food packaging helps protect food and prolong its shelf life, ensuring it safely reaches the last mile and households.

From a food system standpoint, which promotes development by enabling both nutrition-dense foods and complementary nutrition for communities, reducing avoidable food and packaging waste should be prioritized. Thus, a more collective effort and assertive investments are necessary to make significant strides in food waste and loss prevention, using sustainable, smarter packaging solutions that prove to be value-chain enablers throughout the food chain. To that effect, USAID is seeking to fund a sustainable food packaging solutions innovation associate award (AIDPACK) as part of its Food Systems for Nutrition Innovation Lab (FSN-IL), which promotes food system innovations, novel technologies, and best practices to support improved diet quality, nutrition, and resilience.

https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/2022-05/USAID_Nutrition_Strategy_5-09_508.pdf https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/2022-05/USAID_Nutrition_Strategy_5-09_508.pdf https://r.search.yahoo.com/_ylt=AwrihvCFp.dlwBIGyDoPxQt.;_ylu=Y29sbwNiZjEEcG9zAzEwBHZ0aWQDBHNlYwNzcg--/RV=2/RE=1709709317/RO=10/RU=https%3a%2f%2fpdf.usaid.gov%2fpdf_docs%2fPA00KCZF.pdf/RK=2/RS=qybRJZt5cYxJL8NY4IZpgwEcaVc-

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II. Context

For the past decade, there has been a much more assertive effort by USAID, its partners, and stakeholders in food packaging innovation. This effort has led to the identification, trialing, and piloting of promising packaging technologies and solutions. It has included undertaking shelf-life studies of commodities, conducting packaging life cycle assessments, redesigning packaging functionalities to protect the integrity and safety of foods, and allowing for more effective and agile distribution of the foods by various food programs. Similarly, there has been recognition that creating and supporting local capacity and enabling bulk shipping of food commodities to be packaged by local partners can offer multiple benefits from both a humanitarian food assistance and a development programs standpoint. Packaging food commodities closer to where they are needed minimizes food safety and quality risks and enables more efficient programming and distribution of those commodities. It also facilitates engagement with local partners and governments, supporting local capacity building and packaging technology spillover.

To advance a sustainable food packaging agenda that benefits both humanitarian and development programs, the agency has been carrying out joint work with the World Food Program (WFP) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). Jointly with these partners, the agency has managed to assemble packaging working groups around key areas and organize annual packaging workshops to address pressing packaging and supply chain challenges. These efforts have led to improvements in packaging quality, functionalities, and performance throughout the supply chain.

There is an urgent need for a comprehensive sustainable packaging innovation effort to bolster ongoing initiatives on packaging improvement. This initiative aims to address USAID’s humanitarian and development challenges while fostering expertise in this highly technical and crucial field.

Packaging is recognized as a specialized science and technology discipline, requiring expertise in resources, design, and innovation capacity. It also mandates a profound understanding of various technology and scientific applications essential for research, solution identification, and prototype packaging technology development. Packaging experts must grasp diverse industry requirements and possess the appropriate academic and research network to effectively collaborate with stakeholders, testing, trialing, and implementing technologies aligned with updated sustainable practices.

In line with the objective of revamping ongoing packaging efforts across the agency, addressing humanitarian food assistance needs, supporting capacity building through food packaging investment as a value-chain enabler, and contributing to broader efforts to boost local food systems for development, USAID will fund an associate award specifically focused on sustainable packaging research and innovation.

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III. Main objective

The primary aim of the sustainable food packaging solutions innovation associate award (AIDPACK) is to finance an agency-wide initiative for sustainable packaging research and innovation. This effort, integrated into the Feed-the-Future Food System Nutrition Innovation Lab, seeks to revamp current and future packaging initiatives. The overarching goal is to enhance support for humanitarian food assistance and development programs through strategic advancements in packaging practices.

3.1. Specific Objectives:

3.1.1. Lead and promote collaborative efforts in identifying suitable prototype packaging technologies and solutions, supporting USAID and its partners in preserving food integrity, nutritional quality, and food safety and quality, that ultimately contributes to a more effective and agile supply chain.

3.1.2. Collaborate with stakeholders from food assistance and development programs to integrate various ongoing sustainable packaging research and development workstreams. Facilitate their progress to implement the most promising packaging technology prototypes.

3.1.3. Establish linkages and ensure work continuity with current and future stakeholders, whether academic, technology vendors, or suppliers involved in sustainable packaging research and innovation initiatives relevant to USAID and its partners.

3.1.4. Lead and integrate various ongoing and future stakeholder convenings, such as suppliers, academic and technology vendor workshops, colloquiums, community of practices, and ad hoc meetings to discuss the agency’s sustainable packaging agenda.

3.1.5. Support USAID’s efforts in capacity building for sustainable packaging as a value-chain enabler and as part of broader local food system strengthening initiatives.

3.1.6. Support the identification, development, and piloting of reverse logistics packaging waste reconversion technologies, leading to their local adoption, scale-up, and optimization.

3.1.7. Support the identification, development, piloting, and local adoption of water sanitation packaging technologies, allowing for their use and access in partnership with local businesses and communities.

3.1.8. Support the development of packaging material testing standard operating procedures and packaged finished food testing for integrity and functionalities.

3.1.9. Support efforts in packaging standardization, packaging artwork, labeling, specification, and guidelines relevant to the agency and its partners.

3.1.10. Support shelf life and infestation resilience trials of particularly sensitive packaged food, leading to the optimization of packaging.

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3.1.11. Support the agency’s efforts in identifying and promoting climate-sensitive and sustainable food packaging solutions.

IV. Deliverables

1. An inventory of suitable and promising prototype packaging technologies and solutions has been created and assessed collaboratively with relevant stakeholders, supporting USAID's and partners' efforts in preserving food integrity, nutritional quality, and food safety.

2. A consolidation of the various ongoing food assistance sustainable packaging research and development workstreams has been completed in collaboration with stakeholders from emergency food assistance and development programs.

3. At least the ten (10) most suitable and promising prototype packaging technologies and solutions have been piloted, assessed, and supported for implementation.

4. The network of stakeholders, whether academic, technology vendors, or suppliers involved in sustainable packaging research and innovation initiatives relevant to USAID and its partners, has been maintained and strengthened, during the award period.

5. Major sustainable food packaging convenings relevant to USAID and its partners, such as annual technical packaging workshops, suppliers and stakeholders' meetings, packaging community of interest ad hoc meetings, and technical colloquiums, have been maintained and enhanced.

6. An annual Food Assistance Sustainable Packaging Agenda (FASPA) report has been produced, outlining a yearly packaging work agenda with specific workstreams, and working groups, allowing for monthly meetings to report on progress reports by workstream or working group.

7. At least five (5) activities supporting USAID's efforts in capacity building for sustainable packaging as a value-chain enabler and as part of broader local food system strengthening initiatives have been implemented during the award period.

8. At least five (5) supply chain reverse logistics and packaging waste reconversion technologies have been assessed, and at least the two (2) most promising packaging waste repurposing technologies have been field-piloted in coordination with local partners.

9. At least two (2) of the most promising portable water safety and sanitation packaging technologies have been reassessed and further field-trialed to evaluate suitability, scaling-up potential, and feasibility in terms of evolving into standalone sustainable businesses that can contribute to local circular economies and enable water security in communities facing drinkable water challenges.

10. At least five (5) food assistance suppliers have been supported in implementing packaging material testing standard operating procedures (SOP) for packaged finished food to assess integrity, heat-sealibility, and functionalities.

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11. At least five (5) specialized nutritious food commodity suppliers (i.e., Super Cereal Plus, Corn Soy Blend, Lipid-based Nutritional Supplement, Fortified Rice, Fortified Biscuit, and Fortified Veg Oil) have been supported on packaging standardization, artwork, labeling, specification, and guidelines relevant to the agency and its partners.

12. At least the three (3) food assistance commodities most impacted by infestation have undergone shelf-life testing using the most promising infestation-resilient packaging construction, leading to the adoption and scaling of the most effective packaging technologies.

13. At least one peer-reviewed publication on the economics of food aid packaging and its relevance as a value-chain enabler, both from an emergency food assistance and local food system standpoint, has been achieved.

14. A food assistance sustainable packaging technical advisory group (Packaging TAG) has been formed, including members from academia, research and development, technology, regulatory bodies, commodity suppliers, packaging testing entities, and others.

15. A packaging labeling guideline incorporating language from FDA (2019 FDA OMB Control No. 0910-0807) Guidance for the Industry on Voluntary Labeling Indicating Whether Foods Have or Have Not Been Derived from Genetically Engineered Plants, has been developed and available for USAID and its food assistance commodity suppliers to use in their commodity specifications.

V. The Annual Food Assistance Sustainable Packaging Workshop Series

Packaging sustainability has been an important theme of discussion for USAID and its partners ever since the food assistance workshop series began, in 2017 (The Food Aid Packaging Workshop Series). Different from the traditional definition of sustainability with specific focus on environmental impact, the conversation around food assistance packaging sustainability has a broader scope, emphasizing other areas of concern.

This broader sustainability concept ensures that efforts are not only invested on packaging design and functionality that are more responsive to climate change and the environment, but also it aims at ensuring the sustainability of the food assistance programs as a whole, including building capacity to leverage the potential of packaging as a value-chain enabler. This broader sustainability concept emphasizes the fact that food assistance programs are meant to save lives and improve human conditions in the many deprived regions of the world where humanitarian food assistance and development programs occur. In this regard, the broader packaging sustainability concept looks at multi-purpose packaging, reusability, cost, biodegradable materials, and smart films. Thus, an important outcome of the food assistance packaging workshop is to produce a Food Assistance Sustainable Packaging Agenda (FASPA), outlining the various workstreams, agreed upon during the meeting, ultimately leading to joint packaging work among stakeholders.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwiB1_u8jeWEAxWWkIkEHXUQC4wQFnoECA4QAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.canr.msu.edu%2Fpackaging%2Fevents%2FFoodAidPKG%2Findex&usg=AOvVaw22kWCM4GoThUir8z5ryOgW&opi=89978449 https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwiB1_u8jeWEAxWWkIkEHXUQC4wQFnoECA4QAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.canr.msu.edu%2Fpackaging%2Fevents%2FFoodAidPKG%2Findex&usg=AOvVaw22kWCM4GoThUir8z5ryOgW&opi=89978449

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Main objectives of the Food Assistance Workshop Series

The main goal of these packaging solutions convenings is to enable stakeholder discussions specifically related to packaging as it relates to maintaining the safety and quality of humanitarian food commodities and building capacity to leverage food packaging as a value-chain enabler. Further, it helps identify research and innovation opportunities, and the need to support suppliers in the trialing and testing of promising packaging prototypes and solutions. Specific deliverables, but not limited to, include the following:

1. Provide the space for stakeholder interactions and enable discussions around humanitarian food commodities packaging, which shall include, but not limited to:

a) food aid commodity suppliers; b) packaging technology vendors; c) humanitarian food programming implementing partners (i.e. WFP, UNICEF, MSF, ACF, etc.); d) Researchers and packaging experts; e) academia and other research organizations; f) partner U.S. Government agencies (e.g., USDA, DoD).

2. Produce a Food Assistance Sustainable Packaging Agenda, outlining the various workstreams, agreed upon during the meeting, ultimately leading to a joined packaging work among stakeholders.

3. Develop dissemination content through an open and publicly accessible website where reports, presentations and other resources are available and accessible.

4. Other resources such as facilities for piloting, testing or visualizing prototype packaging solutions.

VI. The Food Aid Packaging Advisory Technical Group

The Food Assistance Packaging Technical Advisory Group (FAP TAG) is an interactive community of interest in packaging science and technology, in support of USAID’s and its partners’ effort on food assistance packaging innovation. It shares a passion for learning and contributing to addressing global nutrition and climate-related challenges in low-middle-income countries. In pursuit of its objectives, FAP TAG members engage in joint activities, discussions, and information sharing, building relationships that facilitate mutual learning. Despite not collaborating on a daily basis or representing specific organizational or individual interests, this community of interest convenes monthly, or as needed, in virtual meetings and holds an expanded annual in-person technical meeting, usually in the shoulder of wider stakeholder’s convenings. During the latter, other experts and stakeholders join to share information and discuss relevant or emerging topics in-depth.

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FAP TAG Objectives:

a) Provide a forum for information, knowledge, and experience sharing, where the community adds value to existing initiatives and research, contributing to informing more sustainable approaches in addressing food packaging and packaging waste.

b) Identify, gather, and discuss new science and evidence in areas such as smart packaging constructions, shelf-life research, infestation control using effective packaging, reverse supply chain logistics on packaging waste-to-product approaches, recyclability, and repurposing of packaging. This aims to improve understanding of sustainable packaging and their appropriateness as value chain enablers from a local food system perspective.

c) Advise the international food assistance and development community on food packaging matters and on cross-cutting issues of interest to the community, such as labeling, traceability.

VII. Relevant resources and documentation

1. The USAID Multisectoral Nutrition Strategy. A strategy to advocate for optimal nutrition, which include effective food packaging, as fundamental to achieving USAID’s wider mission to end extreme poverty and to promote resilient, democratic societies while advancing our national security and prosperity. USAID Multisectoral Strategy.

2. USAID Climate Strategy. An agency long-term high-level framework reflecting how whole-of-Agency approach can dramatically increase USAID’s impact, which sustainable packaging can play a meaningful role: USAID Climate Strategy 2022- 2030.

3. The Sustainable Food Assistance Packaging Agenda Report (The FASPA Report).

A report resulting from the yearly USAID-sponsored MSU Food Aid Sustainable Packaging Solutions Workshop. The FASPA Report.

4. The Food Aid Quality Review (FAQR) Packaging Solutions work stream activities.

Tufts University FAQR Packaging Work Stream.

5. USAID and USDA Commodity Requirements and Specifications. A consolidated database with the various commodity specifications, including TII food aid commodities. USDA Commodity Requirements CRD

6. A Guidance for the Industry for Voluntary Labeling Indicating Whether Foods Have or Have Not Been Derived from Genetically Engineered Plants. FDA GMO Labeling Guidelines

7. FDA regulation of the safety of ingredients added directly to food and substances that come into contact with food, such as those added to packaging materials, cookware or containers that store food. Food Ingredients and Packaging.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwiQxcmlluWEAxUKNzQIHTpIAaMQFnoECB4QAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.usaid.gov%2Fnutrition-strategy&usg=AOvVaw336nqM002nifPdxsOAQasP&opi=89978449 https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwiQxcmlluWEAxUKNzQIHTpIAaMQFnoECB4QAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.usaid.gov%2Fnutrition-strategy&usg=AOvVaw336nqM002nifPdxsOAQasP&opi=89978449 https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwiEoavZluWEAxUzCTQIHUwcAB4QFnoECA4QAw&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.usaid.gov%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2Ffiles%2F2022-11%2FUSAID-Climate-Strategy-2022-2030.pdf&usg=AOvVaw1Nw-1IRkLdAH3RT-RtxkNs&opi=89978449 https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwiEoavZluWEAxUzCTQIHUwcAB4QFnoECA4QAw&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.usaid.gov%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2Ffiles%2F2022-11%2FUSAID-Climate-Strategy-2022-2030.pdf&usg=AOvVaw1Nw-1IRkLdAH3RT-RtxkNs&opi=89978449 https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwicnPDLmOWEAxVyjIkEHYJ8AIQQFnoECBoQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.canr.msu.edu%2Fpackaging%2Fevents%2FFoodAidPKG%2Findex&usg=AOvVaw22kWCM4GoThUir8z5ryOgW&opi=89978449 https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwjQsq7NmeWEAxUijIkEHWKkBgAQFnoECA8QAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Ffoodaidquality.nutrition.tufts.edu%2Ffocus%2Ffood-aid-packaging-solutions&usg=AOvVaw3ubNOreaPMeZi3S_IhWg5H&opi=89978449 https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwjB_oK3muWEAxUIAHkGHWvKC2IQFnoECCEQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ams.usda.gov%2Fservices%2Finternational-procurement%2Fcommodity-requirements&usg=AOvVaw3juiSaEfAbeMSqbB8NwK1g&opi=89978449 https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwj4vZCjm-WEAxUvg4kEHU48CVAQFnoECCYQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fda.gov%2Fmedia%2F120958%2Fdownload%3Fattachment&usg=AOvVaw3R3VgMMEtCeXypnvAQyPCL&opi=89978449 https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwj4vZCjm-WEAxUvg4kEHU48CVAQFnoECCYQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fda.gov%2Fmedia%2F120958%2Fdownload%3Fattachment&usg=AOvVaw3R3VgMMEtCeXypnvAQyPCL&opi=89978449 https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwilhJuKnOWEAxXSg4kEHc9CAsgQFnoECCMQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fda.gov%2Ffood%2Ffood-ingredients-packaging&usg=AOvVaw3hXVbdPg9z-9tN1f2dgtnz&opi=89978449

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8. Packaging’s role in food supply: a crucial element. Food Packaging as Value-chain Enabler.

9. Packaging in developing countries: identifying supply chain needs. Food Packaging and Development

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