Take advantage of regional markets – Kadaga

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First deputy prime minister and minister for East African Community Affairs, Rebecca Kadaga, has urged farmers to add value to their produce to access regional markets and earn more from their output.

“It is better if we export items that have some value addition. The people in the farm will sell, the people in the middle will sell, and then the exporters will take the rest,” she said.

Kadaga was speaking during the launch of The Taste of Uganda Agro-Trade Exhibition, scheduled for June 18 to 19 at the Goldsmiths Centre in London. The event aims to connect Ugandan producers directly with UK importers, retailers and distributors.

Organised by Punda Limited, a UK-based firm, in partnership with Alycom Investments, the event brings together exporters, investors, government agencies and diaspora for direct linkages between Ugandan suppliers and UK buyers.

Uganda has long exported raw commodities, coffee cherries, fresh fruit, and unprocessed crops, capturing only a fraction of the final retail value.

Kadaga said raw produce can rot or be rejected, while processed goods extend shelf life and command higher prices. Experts say many Ugandan farmers are trapped between bumper harvests and thin markets.

“We thought that this would be an opportunity to have the farmer down there bridge with the consumer out of the market. Uganda has so much food that we can offer to the world, but remains constrained by gaps in standards, packaging and knowledge,” said Annie Mungoma, a representative of Punda Limited in Uganda.

Mungoma says Ugandan products ranging from apples, bananas, pineapples and avocados to coffee, flowers and dried fruit will be on display.

Annie Mungoma, a representative of Punda Limited in Uganda. (Courtesy)

Agnes Tindimwesi, an agronomist, estimates that farmers lose 40% of their produce at the farm level due to poor yields, pests and weak standards. A further 20% is lost after harvest, often because of poor handling and storage.

“Go to these expos. These expos are amazing. Cut out the so many middlemen so that you can be able to get back the money that you have invested into agriculture,” Tindimwesi urged.

The UK market, like much of Europe, enforces strict requirements on food safety, traceability and sustainability. Standards begin at the seed and run through the entire chain, from fertiliser use to storage and transport.

Traceability, the ability to track produce from farm to shelf, is becoming mandatory in Europe. Sustainability rules, including restrictions linked to deforestation, are tightening.