For good business, Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni explains as he addresses a group of journalists under a large mahogany tree during a sponsored visit from the United Kingdom and the United States, “requires four factors of production: land, labour, capital and entrepreneurship. The UK has capital and entrepreneurship, we have land and labour.” He is speaking amid reports of the UK experiencing an unexpected shortage of fresh vegetables, attributed to bad weather in Southern Europe and North Africa and supply chain disruptions. Museveni argues that products from Uganda could have been used to replenish the shelves.
The pitch to British business is part of the government’s campaign to raise awareness of agricultural production and boost exports to Western markets. A year ago, a new government initiative called the Presidential Advisory Committee on Exports and Industrial Development (PACEID) was launched. Composed and led by the private sector, PACEID is eager to transform and enhance Uganda’s export potential. The committee that runs the body has set an ambitious goal to increase fruit and vegetable revenue from the current $45 million to $197 million by 2027.
Promoting food safety
One company determined to promote Ugandan products far and wide and help increase revenue from this source is Zahra. Founded in 2018, it is a food processing company operating from the capital Kampala.
Zahra promotes itself as one of the few companies in Uganda certified under the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Food Safety Management System. Zahra processes a range of fresh and dried fruits, nuts, teas, herbs and spices. The company is transitioning to sell all of its products under the “Blossomz” brand name. Dried pineapple and mangoes are starting to grace supermarket shelves in Kenya and Uganda, and Zahra has an exclusive deal with Uganda Airlines to supply nuts and other snack items. But perhaps Zahra’s most innovative product is dried jackfruit.
While the sale and export of jackfruit itself is not uncommon, most jackfruit is currently exported in canned form. With a shelf life of 18 months, one kilogram of dried jackfruit can yield 8 kilograms of jackfruit “meat”. Jackfruit is currently mainly exported to the Netherlands.
Workers process jackfruit at Zahra’s factory in Kampala. (Photo: Jamila Versi)
Huge, spiky fruits
Mature jackfruit trees are common in Uganda and can produce between 200 and 500 of the huge, spiky fruits – each weighing between 10kg and 25kg – per year. The trees grow in most farms and gardens, with each plot supporting three or four trees.
Zahra sends team leaders across the country to meet small farmers, collect the fruit, and use an app to log and weigh the jackfruits before returning them to base. There they undergo quality assurance and are processed, packed and prepared for export.
The fibrous flesh of the jackfruit has a meat-like structure. It readily absorbs flavors, making it an ideal meat substitute, the company says.
Jackfruit has seen a global rise as an alternative to tofu and other meat substitutes. It grows naturally and does not require deforestation for its production. Uganda’s abundant jackfruit had little commercial attention until companies like Zahra began adapting it for international trade, bringing additional income to rural farmers and households.
An unusual problem
However, an unusual problem can cause delivery problems. The fruit itself has an almost mythological significance in Uganda and in some places is considered something that should never be sold. Some see the fruit as food insurance – “even if you can’t make money, you can always eat your jackfruit,” the saying goes. You should always have enough to feed your neighbours.
The tradition surrounding jackfruit is so strong that several times Zahra has discovered that collected jackfruit has been destroyed by angry farmers.
Nevertheless, Zahra is persistent. The company has a 39% female workforce and founder Quresh Fidahusein says the company is in talks about setting up some activities in refugee camps. Uganda hosts more than 1.5 million refugees and the new project would give the refugees the chance to earn a sustainable wage and participate in the local economy.
Zahra’s ambition is to not only promote her Blossomz brand in East African supermarkets – where it already has a niche – but to expand its footprint in the global market through products such as vegan samosas, meatballs and “Rolex” chapati wraps – one of Uganda’s favorite snacks.
A Blossomz representative measures a jackfruit. (Photo: Jamila Versi)
Don’t fly off the shelves
However, Zahra, like other fresh food producers, has a major headache ahead. Some international supermarket chains, such as the Dutch Albert Hejn, have indicated that they will no longer have products in stock that are transported by air freight from June 2023.
This poses huge problems for a landlocked country like Uganda, despite its negligible contribution to global climate change.
Another challenge Zahra faces is the endemic poor infrastructure, high transportation costs and uncertain regulations. PACEID attempts to address these issues by setting specific export targets, developing market intelligence and commercial strategies, and ensuring that producers meet the technical and phytosanitary requirements of trading partners.
Strict security checks are carried out not only at the production sites, but also at the airport, which has renewed its storage facilities and quality controls. Any production that does not comply with the regulations leads to a suspension of the producer.
Economic stability is essential
The achievements of companies like Zahra and the development of high-quality specialty coffees could lead to a multiplier effect and add significant value to Uganda’s agricultural sector, which in turn could increase the size of the country’s middle class.
Middle class-backed trade is seen as a stabilizing force not only within the country but also in terms of regional and international trade.
When asked how regional instability in eastern Congo could affect AfCTA deals, Museveni replies: “The middle class is the stabilizing class,” stating that its absence has fueled the instability. Increased trade would expand the middle class and create more stability, he says.
In addition, the AfCTA is seen as a vital tool both in addressing regional uncertainties and in forging Africa’s future. “Africa was broken. You need to get glue and put each piece together. The best tool for gluing broken glass is the AfCTA. Trade is the best way to do it,” said Odrek Rabwogo, presidential adviser and head of the PACEID committee.
Agriculture is at the heart of Uganda’s economy, he says, and protecting rivers and land will prove crucial to Uganda’s future.
But the country faces difficult choices. With commercial oil production expected to begin in 2025, Uganda faces a trade-off between traditional reverence for the land and development of oil infrastructure, including the Uganda-Tanzania oil pipeline. Environmentalists will be watching closely the impact on the fertile farmlands, which continue to provide a vital income stream.
