Uganda 'top pork consumer in sub-Saharan Africa''

By Francis Emorut                                       

Uganda is the leading consumer of pork in sub-Saharan Africa, according to the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI).

Over 2.3 million pigs are kept by one million households in Uganda for consumption, says the institute which further indicates that the majority of pigs are kept by women in smallholder households.

Pig rearing has become a popular and a lucrative venture in Uganda over the last 30 years.

The institute, which works to improve food security and reduce poverty in developing countries, says the local pig population has climbed from 190, 000 to over 2.3 million in the past three decades.

A 2011 report showed that the domestic consumption rate of pork stood at 3.4kg per person per year.

Researchers from ILRI – whose headquarters are in Nairobi, Kenya – are conducting two projects in Uganda.

The projects are targeted at presenting more efficient ways of raising pigs, safer ways of handling and selling pork, and ways to increase access to pig markets by poor farmers.