The US government will help Kenya expand its avocado export market under a $160 million (Sh22.6 billion) initiative. United States Agency for International Development (USAid) Chief of Staff Robert Mwadime says the organisation wants to scale up avocado acreage in western Kenya to ensure there are enough volumes to sustain the export market when the produce from Latin America is off-season.
According to Mwadime, it is difficult for Kenya’s avocado to compete with the ones from Peru and Mexico, which fetch premium prices and get to the market at the same time as these top producers, suppressing the price for the Kenyan fruit. “We are planning to increase avocado production in western Kenya counties to ensure Kenya's seasons start in January to take advantage of the off-season by major world producers,” he said.
The USAid, through the Kenya Crops and Dairy Market Systems (KCDMS) project seeks to supply over 100,000 avocado seedlings to farmers in western Kenya by November this year to increase agricultural production by spurring competitive, inclusive, and resilient market systems in the horticulture and dairy sectors.
Source: businessdailyafrica.com