UGANDA IS to double vanilla production this year and introduce a code of practice for the industry in order to improve the quality of the product sold on the international market.

"Production has increased in most parts of the country," Susan Karungi, an official from the Uganda National Vanilla Association (UNVA), told The EastAfrican last week. "We expect to produce about 200 metric tonnes this harvest season, up from 102 tonnes last year." 

The co-ordinator of UNVA, Henry Kibuuka, said production would increase further in coming seasons as UNVA are embarks on a massive campaign to set up nurseries in each sub county where vanilla is grown. 

More than 200,000 farmers grow the crop in 30 districts countrywide, and this is expected to increase with the planned campaign, which will take off after the July harvest season. 

Uganda has two vanilla seasons and produces first class (gourmet) black long beans.

The country exports 99.9 per cent of the vanilla it produces, with the US consuming 70 per cent of the exports, while the rest go to Canada, France, Germany, Japan, South Africa and the UK.

Vanilla farmers in Uganda are first catching up with Madagascar, the world's leading producer

Experts told The EastAfrican that because Ugandan vanilla is organic, it has a better flavour and, unlike Madagascar, which has one harvesting season a year, Uganda has two.

The farmers and exporters also hope to take advantage of the shortfalls on the world market following the devastating cyclones that hit Madagascar vanilla plantations recently. 

A tropical cyclone last month killed hundreds of people and destroyed 24,000 hectares of the crop.

The cyclone caused Madagascar, the world's leading producer of vanilla to export only 500 metric tonnes last season from the usual 1,500 metric tonnes.

An official from UNVA said the association hopes to increase by at least 50 per cent the number of vanilla growing farmers in the country during its campaign, as well as improving the quality of the cured beans.

"With regard to quality, we have introduced an industry-wide code of practice and we are disseminating it to all the players in the industry," said Ms. Karungi. "UNVA will also introduce quality audits and seals as a way of reinforcing work on the code of practice." 

Improvements in quality are expected to increase prices for farmers but UNVA officials would not commit themselves to any price projections.

The world price of vanilla today ranges between $350 and 500 per kg of cured beans while farm gate prices stand at $280 per kilo in Uganda. Uganda's vanilla earnings have been growing owing to an ambitious plan to extend farming of the crop beyond the traditional zones, coupled with the dramatic rise in prices on the world market. 

The Uganda vanilla industry is still young. Before 1996, annual exports of cured vanilla beans were generally well under five tonnes. Since then, production and exports have been increasing rapidly, peaking at 90 tonnes in 2002. 

However, the industry's growth is tainted by increasing theft forcing some farmers to employ armed guards on their vanilla fields, pushing up their costs. 

Other farmers have been discouraged from growing vanilla after losing most of their crop to thieves. Officials of UNVA said thefts had also led to harvesting of the pre-mature crop, which affected the quality of the country's produce.

"We hope that the Uganda Export Promotion Board (UEPB) can implement a ministerial directive issued last year to curb the current malpractices before harvest season," said Ms Karungi.

 
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