Hi, I am Anguzu, Radio Pacis AI Assistant. How can I help you today? Ask me about Radio Pacis, our programmes, frequencies, news, Arua, or the world around us.
A tomato vendor at Arua main market serving a customer. Photo by Morish Dramadri. By Morish Dramadri Arua city The infiltration of foreign countries into Uganda’s agricultural market is gravely pressing hard the domestic dealers of tomato in Arua city as price
A tomato vendor at Arua main market serving a customer. Photo by Morish Dramadri.
By Morish Dramadri
Arua city
The infiltration of foreign countries into Uganda’s agricultural market is gravely pressing hard the domestic dealers of tomato in Arua city as prices continue to hike due to foreign market demand, dwindling the domestic supply.
Currently, Uganda’s tomato farmers are now reaping high on their products from the neighboring states of Democratic Republic of Congo, South Sudan and Kenya the known producer of tomato that pay a better price than the domestic market, making farmers now to prioritize the foreign market to its initial local market causing domestic scarcity.
According to the vendors, the infiltration of the foreign buyers has caused a rapid change in price; with a box of tomato now ranging between 550000 shillings to 650,000 though Arua main markets receives approximately 5 to 6 trucks of tomatoes weekly.
Avaru Monday one of the vendors in Arua main market dealing in tomato business attested that though they get all these number of trucks the majority end up in Congo since they do not bargain the price, offering a fertile ground for the suppliers to shift their products.
“Out of the 5 or 6 trucks, the majority end up in Congo we are only left with 2or 3 trucks weekly. What we got from our suppliers is that Congo, Kenya and Sudan have entered the market deeply, the price we pay here is very small compared to the Congolese, and they buy without bargaining,” Avaru testified.
As of today, the price of tomatoes at Arua main market ranges from 2000 shillings and above.
Sauda Candiru another vendor in the market lamented that this is making it hard for them to make sales, appealing to local farmers in West Nile to step up their production to fulfill the local demand.
“The price of tomato has risen to 500,000shillings, now it’s hard for us to sell even the customers are not coming now because the price is too much, if only our people would embrace growing tomatoes we would get them within here at low price,” Sauda decried.
Meanwhile Asibazuyo Beatrice, another vendor at Arua main market attributed the rising price of tomatoes to the seasonal production in the country.
“Nowadays the price of tomato is very high, not because it not there totally but because of the season. This is not a good season for tomatoes that is why we are getting few supplies,” Asibazuyo affirmed.
Arua main market that lies within the boundaries of three states, currently serves as a pick up point for vendors from the neighboring states of Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan after receiving tomato supplies from area of Kampala, Luweero, Wobulenzi among others.