New management of the Soroti fruit factory is eyeing regional markets

The new management of the Soroti fruit factory said that it is working to obtain international certification for its products. Ms Azeb Mesfin Zenawi, director of Chimaki, which the government has entrusted to manage the factory, said this will allow them to export their products.

On Friday, Ms Zenawi spoke to farmers at the Arapai factory for the first time since taking over the operation. She explained that although fruit products from the factory cross the borders of Rwanda, Sudan and DR Congo, it does not do so through a formal process, hence the international certification.

The meeting also aimed to reassure citrus farmers about fruit prices, as well as unveil a development plan for the plant, which was previously managed by the Uganda Development Corporation (80 percent stake) and farmers through the Teso Tropical Fruit Growers Cooperative Union (TETFGCU ). ), having 20 percent of the shares. Mrs. Zenawi assured farmers from all over Teso that her company has the potential and passion for this business.

“This is in line with my goals and soul, given President Museveni’s vision to support farmers, I can assure you that we will change this environment. Today we report a slight change from 1,000 metric tons processed last year to 2,000 metric tons processed this year,” she told farmers. The Soroti fruit factory, which began construction in 2014 and was commissioned in 2019 after an investment of $14 million, was expected to transform the lives of farmers who own more than eight million orange and mango trees across the sub-region.

Mr Yorem Opian, who represents farmers on the board of directors of Soroti Fruit Factory, said the change in management means that no entity now owns shares in the factory and at the appropriate time the shares will have to be advertised for interested parties to buy them. . He said farmers should be trained to handle fruits according to international standards. “We are currently seeing a strategic improvement from one million kilograms of citrus processed last year to 2 million kilograms of citrus processed this year. This is the best step to deter farmers from downsizing their farms,” he said.

The plant’s General Manager, Mr. Julius Martin Ekum, said they hope to eliminate the middleman when purchasing citrus fruits from Teso. He added that the new agreement that the government signed with Chimaki binds all participants in the citrus business, including the farm.