Time we cashed in on fruits

Tanzania is richly endowed with oranges, mangoes, avocadoes, pears, grapes and passion fruit. The coastal belt has the potential to produce virtually all kinds of tropical fruits. But it has one major drawback - it lacks processing industries for produce that is perishable. ... Between 40 and 60 percent of the produce goes to waste each season, according to the East and Southern Africa Agribusiness Network. ... While Tanzania is well placed to earn more foreign exchange from the fruit that is now left to rot, the country imports significant quantities of fruit juice concentrate. Statistics indicate that 500 tonnes of concentrate was imported in 2003 alone. Over 60 percent was from Ireland, over 27 percent from Swaziland and about eight percent came from South Africa. ...

The Citizen on Saturday, 26 January 2013