The Minister of State for Agriculture, Fred Bwino Kyakulaga has advised Vanilla farmers across the country to start harvesting their valuable crop from 24th June to 23rd September 2024.
Minister Kyakulaga, said this during a press briefing at the Uganda Media Centre in Kampala on Wednesday.
Minister Kyakulaga warned Vanilla farmers against harvesting the crop earlier than the stipulated period, saying those who will harvest immature vanilla will face the heavy arm of the Law.
“Vanilla takes nine months to mature. The first vanilla to flower and pollinate takes three months and will be the first to mature”, he said.
He called upon members of the public to be vigilant and alert the Ministry of Agriculture, the police or local leadership of any farmer who engages in harvesting pre-mature vanilla seeds or found roasting the seeds to claim they are mature.
“Uganda is number one producer of high quality vanilla seeds in the world and number two producer of vanilla seeds on the globe”, he added.
According to Hon. Bwino, there are 65000 vanila farmers in Uganda spread across 30 Districts. He said last year, vanilla exports fetched Uganda USD$ 20.66 million.
“My ministry will continue to put in place enabling laws to protect vanilla farmers from theft of their crops by punishing perpetrators heavily”, he further pointed out.
In a press statement released, the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries, pointed out that; vanilla, often referred to as the “liquid gold” due to its high market value, is a highly sought after spice obtained from the pods of an orchid plant.
“It’s renowned for its distinctive aroma flavor and numerous applications in culinary, beverage, confectionary, aromatherapy and cosmetics industries as making it the second most valuable spice after saffron”, reads the press statement in part.
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