The Former Minister of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries, Frank Tumwebaze, has flagged off Uganda’s inaugural export of canned pineapples to China, describing it as a major breakthrough in the country’s agro-industrialisation drive and export market expansion.
Tumwebaze said 104 metric tonnes of processed pineapples were exported by DESHIBURG Company, an investor operating under the Uganda-China Agriculture Cooperation Industrial Park in Luwero District.
“Straight from the swearing-in ceremony, I dashed to Luwero to flag-off the inaugural export of 104 metric tonnes of canned pineapples to China by DESHIBURG company,” Tumwebaze said.
The minister said DESHIBURG is the first investor in Uganda to establish a dedicated canned pineapple processing factory, with the capacity to process 500 tonnes of pineapples per day.
He noted that the factory would significantly increase demand for pineapples and help solve long-standing market challenges faced by farmers dealing in perishable agricultural produce.
“This increases the demand for pineapples as a raw material and ends the perennial challenge of lack of market for our perishable agricultural produce,” Tumwebaze said.
He added that the development should encourage farmers to expand production in order to meet the growing industrial demand.
“It places a challenge to our farmers to produce more for this demand,” he said.
Tumwebaze said government leaders and agricultural extension workers must now intensify mobilisation efforts to guide farmers towards commercial and demand-driven farming.
“I have made a clarion call to the local political leaders and agriculture extension personnel to mobilise and guide our farmers to start intentional farming — farming that targets to meet existing demand of a particular agro-raw material sustainably,” he said.
The minister argued that the increasing number of agro-processing factories across the country demonstrates that markets for agricultural products are now available.
“This huge proliferation of agro-industries speaks to farmers only one message; produce, produce and produce more,” Tumwebaze said.
“The excuses of no markets for agricultural produce is no more with this revolution of agro-industrialisation,” he added.
He urged farmers to produce both for household food security and for domestic, regional and international markets while observing acceptable production standards.
“Produce for own food, produce for the market — domestic, regional and international — and please do so following the acceptable standards,” Tumwebaze said.
The export comes as Uganda intensifies efforts to increase value addition to agricultural products and boost exports under growing trade and investment cooperation with China.
