Fresh fruit by accident: Trailblazers light up cattle, extend garden freshness and help save water

You cannot see it, smell it or taste it. So how do you know this life-extending food gel is really there?

The proof, it seems, is in the apple pudding.

North West University students and academics showed how imagination can be brought to life when they pitched seven innovative ideas last week to potential investors at the Standard Bank Incubator.

One of them - an odourless, tasteless and transparent gel that lengthens the life of fruit and vegetables - was invented by accident in a failed experiment, said biochemist Francois Taute.

"I was trying to invent something for 3D printing and one of my blends didn't look suitable so I decided to play around," he said. He took a few apples from his lunch box, dipped them in the blend and let them dry.

"I saw it kept the fruit fresh."

People can swallow the gel safely. It lengthens the life of apples, oranges, tomatoes and grapes by about a week and it adds a shine.

Taute wants to try it out on red meat, chicken and fish.

Johan du Toit, CEO of Kemajo Food Technologies, plans to market the gel commercially.

"The amount of food that is wasted in the supermarkets and in our own houses is just astronomical. Through the chain you should see a dramatic reduction in wastage."

Kemajo will target fresh-produce distributors, retailers and subsistence farmers.

Another of the ideas can help avert accidents at night involving animals.

It makes the coats of cows and donkeys glow in the dark.

Moonshine Livestock Reflector, brainchild of Taung local Morebodi Kaotsane, is a long-lasting reflective spray for livestock and game.

Kaotsane said straying donkeys caused a lot of accidents at night in Taung, a small town in North West province. "The initial idea was to save lives."

Now he is looking for backing from investors to produce and market the spray.

Mzwakhe Sifuba and Kgaugelo Maripane pitched a business that can be squeezed into a bag.

They have created a waterless car-wash detergent as their answer to water restrictions.

The key ingredients of their package are the business plan and the entrepreneurial-skills training that go with the bag.

They are seeking corporate sponsors to help prospective car-wash owners buy the bags, which will equip teams to enter the business with all the tools they need to make a success of it.