Tanzania Horticulture Association To Expand Services In Coastal Region To Boost Exports

The Tanzania Horticulture Association (TAHA), a business association compounded by all horticulture stakeholders in the country, has recently announced that it will extend its logistic services to Tanzania’s southern and coastal regions to tap the area’s potential and growing market.

Through TAHA Fresh Handling Services Limited (TAHAFRESH), the association’s logistic company, TAHA plans to expand its operations to Morogoro, Mbeya, Iringa, and Njombe regions to strengthen the supply chain management services and support horticultural growth.

The announcement was done by TAHA’s CEO, Ms. Jacqueline Mkindi, whom explained that there is a huge potential in the region that cannot be underestimated and engaged to work hardly to ensure the sector’s success in those regions.

Since TAHA’s inception in 2004, horticulture has become the centre of attention in the country’s development agenda with an average growth of 11% per annum against an average growth of 4% per annum in the overall agriculture sector, Ms. Mkindi added.

According to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), onions are one of the main contributors to Tanzania’s horticulture exports growing from USD 0.19 million in 2004 to USD 3.31 million in 2013.

It has made the Tanzania’s onions industry one of the biggest in Africa currently ranking at the 9^th position representing 1.1% of the continent’s industry total exports with Egypt leading the list representing 72%.

According to TAHA, the southern and coastal regions manage an average price of onions at approximately TZS 823 per kilo and with a better supply chain, demand is expected to raise prices as those in Kenya or Leshoto at around TZS 1,153 and TZS 1,040 per kilo to attract investment opportunities.

Same situation with tomatoes, whose average price in the southern and coastal regions is at approximately TZS 633 per kilo while in Zanzibar are the best investment opportunities with a price at TZS 1,188 per kilo.

Among other vegetables to be promoted are carrots and green pepper which have the best investment opportunities in Zanzibar and Dodoma according to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).