Uganda dispatches 24,000 liters of Hass Avocado oil to Italy

By Ben Musanje

28^th March 2024

The National Agricultural Advisory Services (NAADS) have disclosed plans of having more growth of Hass Avocado and more oil processing from this fruit.

This was while flagging off a consignment of avocado oil extracted from Hass Avocado worth Shs750 million to Europe by the Balaji Agro Industries Limited based in Kinyanya Ward, Butalangu Town Council, Nakaseke district.

HadijahNakakande, the NAADS Public Relations Officer who represented Dr Samuel Mugasi, the Advisory’s Executive Director, says that among the plans is to set up collection centers at district levels that will help Hass Avocado Grade A exporters will pick them and also where oil processors will get grade B fruits from.

She emphasizes that this will be done after achieving the five million Acres of Hass Avocado growing which is expected to happen in five years since there is a big demand of 160,000 kilograms of avocado fruits for the existing 5 oil processing factories in the country.

Nakakande says they are to continue encouraging Ugandans to plant Hass Avocado since the fruit is now considered a cash crop that earns a lot of money yet it takes a few years to harvest.

Kenneth Ntegyereize, the Operations Manager for Balaji Agro Industries says that the dispatched consignment of crude oil weighs 24000 liters and is the sixth exported to Europe since they started producing avocado oil last year in October.

He says that by exporting such oil to Europe like in Italy and France where they manufacture several products from it including expensive cosmetics, animal feeds, cooking oil, farming fertilizers and wines, the country earns a lot of revenue from it.

Ntegyereize explains that they are faced with the challenges of poor road network, power fluctuations, and limited supply of Hass and local avocado which affects their oil production despite the huge market in Europe.

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