Uganda has the highest rate of banana use in the world and is Africa’s top banana crop producer. Now, a Ugandan company is trying to deal effectively with banana plant waste. The business is collecting banana stems to process the plant tissue and make products. Usually, after banana stems removed from the ground, the farmers have to crush the plant waste to small pieces to spread around crops.
Banana production has been increasing over the years. The Uganda Bureau of Statistics found that banana production rose from 6.5 tons in 2018 to 8.3 tons in 2019. TEXFAD deals with the banana plant waste; it collects some of the plant tissue and uses it to make products like floor coverings, containers for home goods and more. John Baptist Okello leads the TEXFAD business division. The company works with seven different farmers’ groups in western Uganda. It pays $2.70 for a kilogram of dried fiber.
David Bangirana is the leader of one such group in Sheema District. He said only a small part of the stem is used for fiber. He said that the rest of the crushed plant remains is returned to the farmer for use as fertilizer.
At a plant just outside the Ugandan capital Kampala, TEXFAD employs more than 30 people who use their hands to make products from banana fiber. The company is now exporting some products to Europe. The company can make some paper products with the material. It is working with researchers to experiment with possible cloth from banana fiber.
Source: learningenglish.voanews.com
