Govt opens pineapple factory in Ntungamo

Pineapple farmers in Ntungamo, Rwampara and Sheema districts, who have been struggling for market, have reason to smile following the commissioning of a juice processing factory in the area.

The factory has been established in Nyamukana Town Council, Ntungamo District, by the Uganda Industrial Research Institute (UIRI) under the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation.

While commissioning the factory on Monday, First Lady Janet Museveni advised residents to sell their pineapples to the factory so that they can get more profits.

“Now that you have received the factory, your business will expand and your income as families will also increase. The President has talked about fighting poverty for a long time but it is a journey and he has been adding in money to boost people’s efforts. Now you do not have an excuse,” Ms Museveni said.

“They were telling me that people from South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo come to buy pineapples. Now that you have your own factory, it will give you competitive prices,” she added.

Advice
Ms Museveni advised farmers to practice better farming methods to avoid soil erosion and soil infertility.

The factory, which is capable of producing 1,000 litres of juice per hour, operates eight hours a day. It will be managed by Nyakihanga Fruits and Vegetable Growers Co-operative Society Ltd. Mr Bernard Mugume Bucooni, the cooperative chairperson, said they get three 500ml bottles of juice from one pineapple fruit.

He said each 500ml bottle is sold at Shs2,000, meaning Shs6,000 is got from each pineapple sold to the factory.

“Farmers have been selling a two-kilogramme pineapple at Shs1,000. The cost of production is Shs4,320, which means that a farmer will get Shs1,680 from one pineapple fruit. This will increase our household incomes,” Mr Mugume said.

He added that the association has 3,222 pineapple farmers producing 80,000 pineapples every day in peak season (seven months).

The UIRI director, Prof Charles Kwesiga, in his remarks said through industrialisation and value addition, farmers gain more profits from their produce.

“Adding value means that you are moving away from the open-market approach where you just sell products as they are from the garden. We are saying add value to those products and you will get more for your efforts,” Prof Kwesiga said.

He added: “So instead of selling pineapples like they do on the road, we are selling juice and by doing that, we are extending the fruit’s shelf life by keeping the juice in cold rooms. We have the capacity and knowledge to make sure that what you are producing is of high quality.”

The minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Dr Elioda Tumwesigye, said the ministry will keep training factory staff to ensure quality and sustainability.