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More and more farmers in Uganda are resorting to avocado cultivation, clearing their sugarcane farms thanks to the support being extended by the government for avocado cultivation.
More and more farmers in Uganda are resorting to avocado cultivation, clearing their sugarcane farms thanks to the support being extended by the government for avocado cultivation.
The government’s assurance to grow the fruit is on account of the new popularity of the fruit around the world due to its health attributes. Uganda’s soils and climate favour avocado growing. Agricultural experts predict that Uganda’s potential to grow and export fruits are higher than Kenya’s. its neighbour Kenya is one of the ten largest exporters of the fruit globally.
A farmer can harvest 3000 fruits in a year, which works out to 500 kilograms. Each kilogram fetches US$ 2 in the international market. That works out to be much higher than a farmer can earn from sugar exports If 10,000 farmers resort to avocado farming in Uganda, prospects of the country earning a huge amount of foreign exchange are there.
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The government says the idea is not to replace sugarcane but to expand the list of strategic crops that can earn more from exports. Vegetable oil is also extracted from Hass avocado, giving more value to the farmer. In 2021, avocado exports totalled US$7 million, a figure Uganda hopes to increase further.
