Fresh from the garden to the market, how Uganda’s fruits and vegetable production can boost exports

Road side markets are a very common sight in Uganda. Travelers from any part of the country will often stop and do their grocery shopping, guaranteed to get a good bargain from these markets. Families that need to stock up on food, vegetables and other produce also stop at a market in the neighbourhood. 

One common thing in these markets is the fruits and vegetables, fresh from the garden to the market stall.  Uganda is ranked among the countries in the world that produces a lot of fruits and vegetables all year round. The country has been ranked among one of the leading fruit producers in Africa, thanks to the abundant water supply from Lake Victoria and the River Nile, combined with a high altitude that moderates the tropical heat. 

Most of the fruits and vegetables produced in Uganda are consumed locally and are produced by smallholder farmers, who harvest and transport their produce to rural market centres for local consumers, some are bought at the farm by neighbours. Farmers who produce on a medium scale transport their fruits and vegetables to bigger market centres where many producers use the informal open-air markets that are organised periodically. While the country is still grappling with post-harvest technologies for locally consumed fruits and vegetables, fruits like pineapples and avocados exported to Europe and other destinations where they are graded and packaged according to export standards. 

Uganda produces a lot of fruit, but only exports a small percentage of total production. This is mainly due to high levels of food waste. High quality standards in the foreign markets, consumer preference for legacy fruit varieties, and lack of investments in value-addition facilities are some of the reasons why 70% to 80% of Ugandan fruit never makes it to the market.

With choice improvements, Uganda may well export a larger and better portion of its country’s fruit in the near future. But out-of-reach standards for foreign markets, consumer preferences for legacy fruit varieties, and lack of investment in value-addition facilities have been pointed out as primary reasons why at present the majority of the product never makes it to market. 

The downside

Quresh Fidahusein, the founder of Ugandan fruit and vegetable exporter, Zahra Food Industries Ltd. (ZFI), has been quoted in the Tridge Analysis report stating that 70% to 80% of Uganda’s fruit is wasted. This leads to a poor record in export trade, and to a demoralized farming and export community. 

More so, while the overall quality of Ugandan fruits is high, many Ugandan fruits fail to meet international quality standards because of their sizes. The produce often does not pass standard size classification tests because it tends to be too large. Unlike markets that rely on automation for fruit production, Ugandan farmers produce their fruit naturally and organically with minimal intervention. This makes it difficult to control and standardize fruit dimensions. For example, many Ugandan pineapples and papayas are over two kg each, whereas buyers prefer smaller-sized fruits.

The Tridge Analysis further indicates that while there is a growing global demand for organic and naturally grown fruit, Uganda can use its organic and natural production practices as a competitive edge in the global market. There is a drive, fronted by the government under different programmes such as the National Agricultural Advisory Services (NAADS) and the Operation Wealth Creation (OWC) programme to increase size uniformity by using different seeds and by using automated production processes. 

The analysis further points to increased awareness in Europe and the United States about the correlation between limited sizing standards and food waste, more importers are becoming interested in buying larger sized produce. All this indicates the time may be ripe for an uptick in Ugandan exports.

The government has also intensified the value addition drive to tackle the problem of wasted produce. Uganda fruits are exported fresh, and there is not a lot of value-addition domestically. This is mainly due to the lack of appropriate infrastructure, such as processing facilities which increases the shelf lives of the products but also increases the margins for farmers and processors.

Significant investments are being made by the Ugandan government to improve value-addition infrastructure in the country, for example by improving education on value-addition practices. According to the Kenya Broadcasting Corporation, during the 21st COMESA International Trade Fair and High-Level Business Summit, leaders of African countries, including the President of Uganda, discussed “ideas and efforts to diversify and add value to raw materials produced in Africa instead of the continent being a source of raw products for the rest of the world.”

Furthermore, the country recently launched the export promotion strategy in which seven commodities have been identified for the export market to propel the country’s economic development. Presidential advisor on special duties, Odrek Rwabwogo earlier this year identified steel, cement, fruits and vegetables, beef, coffee, fish and dairy products as  the seven commodities that the government, working with the private sector will promote. This strategy will help the government reach a wider export market and boost revenue for the country.