Photo via Anadolu Agency

Tanzania has secured an overseas market to sell fresh avocados to India, a move that is expected to strengthen bilateral trade ties and bring higher returns to smallholder growers.

Despite being the third-largest avocado producer in Africa after South Africa and Kenya, Tanzanian farmers have largely failed to access the export market for their produce due to quarantine pests believed to exist in the country.

However, the latest move by India is a huge boost for the local avocado industry since it opens doors for many smallholder farmers to reach international consumers instead of crowding the domestic market, officials said.

Traditionally, about 80% of the avocados grown in the East African country are consumed locally, but observers say export is an important and developing sector for the industry.

In 2003, India imposed an import embargo on avocados due to concerns that the fruits might be infested with dangerous pests.

However, Tanzania's government said last week that India's health authorities had allowed the export of the highly nutritious fruit -- typically used as a spread on toast, following lengthy negotiations.

Gaining traction

Driven by the global surge in prices and demand, the avocado business is rapidly gaining traction among local farmers, thanks to the government’s painstaking efforts to develop the fruit value chain in the country.

The development comes just a day after a key player in the multibillion-dollar horticulture industry set its eyes on the $133 million Chinese avocado market. South Africa also recently granted Tanzanian avocados access to its relatively large market, local media reported.

“As we sincerely salute the government for its painstaking efforts to strike a bilateral deal for Tanzanian avocados to access the Indian market, we are now eyeing the Chinese market,” said Jacqueline Mkindi, group CEO of the Tanzania Horticulture Association (TAHA).

As a champion of horticulture in the country, TAHA played a central role in supporting the government to persuade the Indian government to open up its expansive avocados market to Tanzania, which officials believe is a significant step forward.

Scent of money

Mdili Katemani, a senior official in the Agriculture Ministry, has expressed optimism in Tanzania's ability to explore a new market, which he believes will provide fresh impetus for economic growth.

“We are quite delighted for this opportunity and we are ready for business,” Katemani told Anadolu Agency.

According to him, avocado shipments to India will begin soon, and Tanzania's government has identified export companies to help facilitate lucrative trade opportunities.

“We expect that our avocado growers will immensely benefit from this opportunity,” he asserted and added that the overseas market will help its growers improve their livelihoods by providing a reliable market for their produce.

Avocado is prized for its high nutritional value, as it contains more protein than any other fruit, as well as fiber, potassium, and vitamins, and provides cholesterol-free plant-based fat.

Blessed with huge production potential in different agro-ecological zones, the country has the potential to supply avocados to the global market for nine months during the calendar year, agricultural experts said.

The fruits, mostly grown in the northern Kilimanjaro region, Iringa, Mbeya, and Njombe regions in the southern highlands, take at least three years to reach commercial fruition.

Tanzania's avocado export destinations include India, China, the US, and South Africa, which together account for a market worth over $1 billion annually, according to government estimates.

All clear

Officials said India and Tanzania have agreed on an avocado verification protocol and are about to implement phytosanitary measures to flag off the shipment of the fruits.

Avocado demand has risen due to India's strong appetite for ready-to-eat healthy fruits. And that impact is being felt thousands of miles away on farms in the country's southern highlands where growers’ fortunes are changing.

Aloycia Mndeme, a farmer in the Njombe region who frequently loses avocados due to local market conditions, is hoping to seize the opportunity. “I don’t want this opportunity to slip away. It is my only chance to make money,” she told Anadolu Agency.

“I just can't wait to see a shipment of my fruits sold in India,” she said.

Mushobozi Baitani, a plant protection specialist with the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), urged farmers to seize the opportunity to gain economic benefits.

“Pests and diseases have affected the quality of avocados produced in the country, but the situation has improved,” Baitani explained.

In 2018, Tanzania earned $8.5 million by exporting 7,551 tons of avocados to Europe and Asia through six companies.

Data from TAHA shows that avocado exports nearly quadrupled from 1,877 tons in 2014 to 9,000 tons in 2019, bringing in about $12 million to the country. - Kizito Makoye, Anadolu Agency