Three representatives from Antigua and Barbuda – Dior John, Demi John, and Miuccia Floyd – have embarked on a three-week specialized training programme hosted in China, focused on elevating national food safety standards, advancing food processing technical capabilities, and cutting preventable agricultural waste across local supply chains. Running from November 4 to 24, the intensive initiative is organized by Henan University of Technology, and brings together 25 industry practitioners and technical specialists drawn from a diverse cohort of developing nations across the Global South. The curriculum blends rigorous theoretical instruction with hands-on operational training, covering core modules including optimized grain processing workflows, sustainable edible oil extraction methodologies, rigorous food quality assurance frameworks, climate-resilient post-harvest storage techniques, and operation of next-generation food processing equipment. A key dedicated segment of the training will also share evidence-based strategies to minimize post-harvest crop losses, alongside innovative circular economy approaches that convert otherwise discarded agricultural byproducts into high-value, marketable goods. Beyond classroom-based learning, the visiting cohort will participate in structured site visits to leading university research laboratories, state-of-the-art agricultural technology facilities, and commercially operating modern food processing enterprises, to observe real-world implementation of best practices and gain actionable, practical experience that can be adapted for local use back home. For Antigua and Barbuda, participation in this targeted capacity building programme is projected to deliver tangible long-term benefits: it will support the country to strengthen its post-harvest crop preservation systems, boost the resilience and self-sufficiency of local domestic food production, and lay the technical groundwork to develop a new pipeline of higher-value processed agricultural products for both local consumption and export markets.
Three Antiguans Attend Food Processing Training Programme in China
