Can you explain the different opportunities in the agricultural sector in Ethiopia?

“More than eighty percent of Ethiopians are engaged in subsistence agriculture – meaning they produce and survive in a hand to mouth farming and rain fed agricultural cycle. The only commercial farms were nationalized by the former communist government and transitioned into state run farms. Now those state farms are being privatized and new large-scale private entities are coming to play the game of commercial farming. From food and fiber production to value added products in fresh fruit and vegetables, oil seeds, pulses, dairy products, meat production and aquaculture are all wide open opportunities for astute investors.”

Please describe your venture?

“Ethamco, LLC was established in the US but for the sole purpose of establishing an agricultural operation in Ethiopia. We have the background and expertise in agriculture, & agricultural processing in California, and have a good management team in place. Our core business will be centered in both conventional and organic fruit and vegetable production. While we realize there is a growing market for organics in the European and Middle East markets, we feel that we have an obligation to produce and make available organic products for local consumption as well. While on the conventional side there is ample demand both in the domestic market as well as the export markets. The trick is having a constant reliable supply of good quality produce year round.

We also have plans to be engaged in livestock production, dairy production and in aquaculture either by acquisition, by creating alliances or by direct investment as opportunities arise. We hope to encourage and exploit opportunities in creating more Inter-African trade.

The Ethamco model is simple – executing on a tried and true method of agricultural production for success. That is growing and producing crops that are of high quality, that meet or exceed the needs of our customers and to be a consistent and reliable year round supplier.”

What are your successes and challenges so far?

“The challenges have been getting the land lease from the government. It has taken about a year and we are finally receiving the land now and should be preparing the land and planting in a couple of months. That would allow us to have some vegetables to harvest in late April or May.

We have not sat idly for one year as we have done trials for several crops in two different locations and were successful with promising yields in open field trials. We also have created alliances with an organic liquid fertilizer company by signing an LOI (letter of intent) to conduct trials both in Ethiopia and California.

If successful, Ethamco will have an exclusive sells agreement for worldwide marketing of the product. In addition, we have also signed an LOI with the largest coffee and tea producer in the country again to conduct vegetable trials on their farms, which we hope will lead for additional source for vegetables. On the organic side, we have created an alliance for the formation of an association – Organic Producers & Exporters Association of Ethiopia (OPEAE).”

Tell us more about your background?

“I have been in California agriculture for over thirty-eight years. I have worked for a large diversified farming operation that was involved in crop production, cattle feeding, diary production and feed-mill operations. I have also been involved in the California Department of Food and Agriculture in the administration of commodity boards, commissions and councils. For the last nineteen years, I have been involved with the largest tomato processor in the world located in California.

Our team includes, Mr. Mark DeLaMater, our CFO who has also extensive experience in California agriculture and agro processing. He was involved as financial manager in a 22,000 acre farm as well as in a tomato products processing company. Our Ethiopian staff, Mr. Gebeyehu Tessema and Mr. Million Asfaw have over thirty years experience in Ethiopian agriculture at various levels including farm management and growing vegetables and agronomic practices.”

What are you looking for at VC4Africa?

“We are looking for investors, collaborators, individuals and companies that are interested in a long-term alliance or supplier arrangements. Joint venture opportunities, potential super market development in Ethiopia, and people with ideas that are not afraid to exchange information. I am a believer in open communications between individuals, companies and organizations that deem to represent people.”

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They might be expensive. They might be hit-or-miss in availability. They definitely won’t be all in one place. Yet, as Judith Michailiuk, a former freelance charter chef who has worked on sail and power yachts from 50- to 170-feet, knows, locally grown fruits and vegetables are much fresher and tastier.

“I went all the way across the Atlantic with some red and green leaf lettuces and mesculin that I got from a farmer in Antigua and they were still fresh when we reached Gibraltar,” said Michailiuk, who splits her time between Canada and the Caribbean where she runs a yacht provisioning business called Loose Ends during the winter in Antigua.

There is increasing interest from megayacht chefs for locally grown produce, said Claire Budhlall Spronk of Spronks’ Mega Yacht Services at Camper & Nicholson’s Port Louis Marina in Grenada.

“There will always be those who want to offer only what the guests might be used to in Europe and North America, but more chefs want to offer dishes that reflect the region, and that means local produce,” she said.

Sourcing local produce can be more challenging than one call to a supplier or one stop at a supermarket. Some farmers walk the docks at Caribbean marinas such as IGY’s Rodney Bay Marina in St. Lucia, but this is more of an exception than the rule.

Therefore, a yacht chef’s best bet is to visit the local market where there’s an opportunity to create relationships with farmers or a provisioner who specializes in locally-grown products.

Every Caribbean island has a fresh foods market. In Puerto Rico, the Mercado Agricola Natural Viejo San Juan is located in the San Juan Museum on Norzagaray Street in Old San Juan. It’s close to the megayacht docks at Club Nautico de San Juan, open every Saturday at 8 a.m., and boasts more than two dozen vendors selling fresh, organic produce.

East on the U.S. Virgin Island of St. Thomas, the Rastafarian farmers of We Grow Food sell their fresh, organic produce the first and third Sunday of each month at IGY’s Yacht Haven Grande marina.

“The yacht chefs are usually looking for fruits,” farmer Benita Martin said. “They are surprised to see we also grow broccoli, cauliflower and greens. I am always so amazed how important it is to the chef and their boss to have organic, locally grown produce.”

The Castries Market in St. Lucia is about half an hour by car from IGY’s Rodney Bay Marina. Saturday is the big day. But “during the week, there are vendors on the roadsides who sell all day long,” said Portia Mogul, the marina’s marketing, sales and event coordinator. “There are also some farmers who grow high-end greens and provision directly to our marina tenants.”

Antigua’s big open-air market is located in St. John’s, a 30-minute drive from the many marinas to the south. Yet closer to the yachts, Sarah Sebastian, manager of the Antigua Yacht Charter Show and a broker for Nicholson Yachts, recommends Bailey’s Supermarket in Falmouth Harbor.

Bequia-based Iris Mösing, charter chef aboard the 75-foot ketch S/Y Shaitan of Tortola, takes the ferry to the Kingston market in St. Vincent when she wants to stock up on local produce.

“I make sure I go with $20s and $50s EC (Eastern Caribbean) because nobody has change,” she said. “I leave each of my bags with the market ladies that I bought the produce from so I don’t have to lug everything around. I’ve never had any problem doing this.

“In fact, the ladies are great. They will even tell you how to cook something if you don’t know. Then, when it’s time to go, I ask one of the ladies to get me a ‘pusher’. One of the boys or ‘pushers’ will bring a wooden cart and help me load up everything at once to take back to the boat for about $10 to $20 EC.”

In addition to the Kingston market, Narendra Sethia, base manager for Barefoot Yacht Charters in St. Vincent & the Grenadines, said “There are also individuals we can contact who grown their own produce and will deliver to the yachts.”

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Spread over around 280 hectares in the Panj Katha area, the Khanpur orange orchards are famous for their juice content and taste, producing around 2,200 to 2,400 tones of fruit per annum, said officials of Crop Reporting Centre Haripur. All varieties of citrus fruit such as red blood, sackry, mussamy, hamlin, washington naval, ruby red, early fruiter and grapefruit are sold at makeshift kiosks linking the Khanpur and Abbottabad roads. The varieties are available in the local market from early December till April end.
A good number of unskilled manpower is always utilised in the plantation, hoeing, watering, gathering and packing of the fruit around the year. However commercialisation of the land, especially that under orange cultivation, and shortage of water has forced farmers to chop off orchards.

According to local revenue officials the area has lost several citrus orchards that were spread over an area of about 500 to 625 acres during the last three years. A local farmer, Ziafat, said that most of the orchard land has been utilised by housing societies due to water shortage. “Our water from the Khanpur Dam is being given to Islamabad, which is causing a reduction in the citrus yield.” He said that the people of Khanpur sacrificed their land for Khanpur Dam but in turn were deprived of their water share for irrigation.

Ziafat said that due to water scarcity an orange tree that used to produce 800 to 1,000 fruits now only produces about 300 to 400 fruits, that also with a shrunken weight and size. According to local agriculturalist Sadiq Shah, the reason for the decline in the produce is the change in climatic conditions since the last two decades. He said before 1988, the Khanpur region used to receive an annual rainfall of about 1,000 to 1,200 mm which has now fallen between 700 and 800 mm. This dry spell has affected the underground water level, while the diversion of Khanpur Dam water to Rawalpindi and Islamabad has also reduced the amount of water available for citrus irrigation. The biggest citrus orchard chopped during the last few years were Faredia Farms of Nawabzada Salauddin Khan of the former state of Amb and Hazara, in place of which various housing societies have been established. About 50 per cent of the locals have been rendered jobless as the small landlords are giving preference to selling out their fertile land for housing societies instead of growing fruits on them, said Muhammad Nawaz, another farmer. He said the cost of agricultural practises has increased manifold as opposed to the produce, which is also forcing the farmers to sell their land.

However, Saira Zahoor Awan, a local environmentalist termed the unchecked and growing trend of cutting down of orchards for commercial purpose as “an alarming situation for the ecosystem” and demanded practical steps to be taken for protecting the fruit production and fertility of the Khanpur Valley. She also demanded a ban to be put on housing societies on agriculture land and orchards for environment protection.

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I consider myself a pretty healthy eater, but even I know I don’t eat nearly as many vegetables as I should be on a daily basis. According to this HealthDay News piece, I’m not alone: In fact, more than 9 of 10 Americans consume fewer fruits and vegetables than the daily amount recommended by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s dietary guidelines, which is anywhere between 2 cups to 6.5 cups.

Eating more plant-based foods has been shown to help reduce cholesterol, contribute to weight loss, lower blood pressure, prevent birth defects and may even change the behavior of our genes. Bottom line: fruits and veggies are good for you.

So how do we get the 90 percent of Americans to eat up? Angela Ginn, a nutrition education coordinator and diabetes educator at the University of Maryland Center for Diabetes and Endocrinology, and Jessica Crandall, a registered dietitian and certified diabetes educator, share some tips in the piece. And, because I believe that we really do eat with our eyes first, I especially liked how the fruits and veggies were grouped by color and their health benefits:

Blue and purple fruits and vegetables contain anthocyanins, which have been shown to help fight some cancers and are helpful in anti-aging and memory function. They are found in blueberries, blackberries, plums, grapes, figs and raisins.

Green fruits and vegetables contain luteins, which lower cancer risk and help promote better vision and strong bones and teeth. They are found in avocados, kiwi fruit, pears and apples. Red fruits and vegetables contain anthocyanins and lycopene, which can help keep the heart healthy, maintain better memory function and lower the risk for some cancers.

Ginn and Crandall, who are both spokespersons for the American Dietetic Association, also say not to worry too much about whether or not you’re eating fresh, frozen or canned. “They’re all good for you. Fresh or frozen vegetables might have slightly more nutrients [they] said, but canned veggies are cheaper and available throughout the year. Just be sure to rinse canned veggies, to reduce the amount of sodium they contain, or buy low-sodium alternatives.”

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Fibroids are non-cancerous growths that don't always have symptoms, but they can be painful or cause menstrual periods to be long and heavy. They may also grow very large, in some cases causing complications with pregnancy and fertility.

The study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, tracked women in their 30s for more than a decade to see if their fruit and vegetable consumption was tied to the chance they developed fibroids. Black women are up to three times more likely to get fibroids, and researchers have wondered if part of that could be explained by diet.

"These data suggest a reduced risk of uterine (fibroids) among women with a greater dietary intake of fruit and preformed vitamin A," wrote lead researcher Lauren Wise at Boston University.

The data came from the Black Women's Health Study, which starting in 1995 had participants report how often they ate a range of foods, from multiple times a day to less than once a month. Questionnaires sent every other year also asked women about any new medical diagnoses they had been given.

Based on these reports, 29 percent of the 23,000 participants had a new case of uterine fibroids between 1997 and 2009.

Women who said they ate at least four servings of fruits and vegetables each day were 10 percent less likely to get fibroids than those who ate less than one daily serving. When fruits and vegetables were analysed separately, researchers found that eating more fruit was linked to the lower risk -- but the same was untrue for vegetables.

Participants who ate two or more servings of fruit daily were 11 percent less likely to say they had developed fibroids than those who had less than two servings a week.

There was no link between how much vitamin C or E, folate or fibre women ate and their risk of fibroids, but the study suggested that getting more vitamin A from dairy products might also be associated with a lower fibroid risk.

"Many women have assumed that developing fibroids and developing fibroid symptoms is something that they can't do anything about," said Elizabeth Stewart, who studies fibroids at the Mayo Clinic but wasn't involved in the study.

"Although this doesn't prove that if you change your diet you may be able to change your risk of fibroids, it does appear that there is some association between diet and fibroids."

Researchers at this point cannot prove that the fruit itself protected women against fibroids, but Wise said that antioxidants in fruit may reduce the risk, possibly by affecting the action of compounds such as estrogen in the body.

"Our study suggests that uterine fibroids can now be added to the list of potential health outcomes for which increased fruit and vegetable intake might be beneficial."

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ORLANDO, Fla.- An apple a day may keep the doctor away, but three kiwis could lower your blood pressure. A study at the American Heart Association scientific meeting in Orlando on Tuesday found that eating the fuzzy-skinned fruit with the tart green flesh three times a day was associated with a drop in blood pressure. High blood pressure is considered a risk factor for heart disease, which is still the world's No. 1 killer.

The eight-week study, led by Mette Svendsen of Oslo University Hospital in Norway, involved 118 subjects with an average age of 55 and mildly high blood pressure.  One group added three kiwis to their daily diet, while the other half added the proverbial apple a day. Kiwis contain lutein, which has antioxidant properties.
 
After eight weeks, researchers found the kiwi group's 24-hour systolic blood pressure was an average of 3.6 millimeters of mercury lower than that of the apple eaters. Systolic is the top number of the blood pressure reading.
 
Diastolic blood pressure was also lower in the kiwi group, but that association to the fruit was not as clear, researchers said. They recommended that the findings be confirmed with a larger study.  Perhaps the most surprising thing about the kiwi fruit study was that it was conducted in Norway and not in New Zealand.

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The fruit and vegetable sectors have the potential to cross half billion dollars mark if the exporters are provided proper facilities of packaging, grading, quarantine and quality control. The country earned US$ 359 million by exporting fruits and vegetables during last financial year 2010 as against the export of US$ 233 million in FY 2009.

The export of fruit and vegetable were recorded at US$ 202 million during the year 2008 thus, an agriculture expert said adding there was a need for organizing training programmes and demonstrations on production-cum-marketing technology for attaining standard products. Export financing is almost not available as banks often hesitate financing this trade being perishable in nature.

"It is recommended that finance facilities may be provided to small farmers who are interested in exports," Chief Executive Officer Harvest Trading Ahmad Jawad told APP. He said, owing to bulkiness and short shelf-life of the products, freight is major component of the C&F cost. By setting-up storage houses and facilities for grading and packing of fruits and vegetables closer to the export points, the country can significantly enhance the exports of these products to Afghanistan and other landlocked states beyond Afghan borders.

He said that export of horticultural products can be further increased through deeper penetration into new markets. There is also need to obtain higher per unit price through improved cosmetic appearance and better packaging of these products, he added.

Ahmad Jawad said that out of 13.67 million tons of annual production of fruits and vegetables in Pakistan, about 30 per cent is lost during pre and post-harvest stages due to primitive and poor techniques of handling. He further said that improvement in the harvest management infrastructure for horticultural products will help reduce the harvest losses, increase production surplus and also the shelf-life and quality of fresh produce.

Besides, he said that it would also greatly contribute to stabilizing the prices in domestic markets and substantially boost exports. Despite Pakistan's immense potential in fruits and vegetables, the country has not so far been able to capture the international market commensurate to its potential.

However, Pakistan can appear as one of the leading exporters of fruits and vegetables if it pays attention to packaging, grading, quarantine and quality control. Freight from Pakistan is more as compared with our competitors in the region like India

He said that the Leasing facility may also be provided to exporters who will establish cold storage houses near clusters of production. Refrigerated vehicles on lease terms are also recommended to strengthen transport network from clusters to airport/seaport.

CEO Harvest Trading said the non-availability of cargo flights/space as per demands in the export markets is also one of the major problems. It is also proposed to increase cold-storage capacity at Airports to preserve freshness of products;

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Fruit-Inform's fruit and vegetable index shows that the value of Ukrainians' fruit and vegetable basket grew by 1.9% last week, after 1% decrease a week earlier. In such a way, for the present, the fresh produce market exhibits no stable tendency, as the basket's value has been both increasing and falling in the past few weeks.

“Stably low prices for traditional vegetables and potatoes together with their negative price dynamics significantly compensate the growth of prices for greenhouse vegetables, as consumption of the latter sharply fell that led to the reduction of their share in the consumption structure”, Tetiana Getman, Head of Fruit-Inform, says. “We should also pay attention to the considerable growth of apple prices in Ukraine notwithstanding the Ukrainian market already having relatively many Polish apples available, while, in the past season, imports from Poland started only in February. Ukrainian apples have already become non-competitive in price in the Russian market. Moreover, Russia's import duty is to be set to zero in 2.5 weeks”, the expert continues.

More information about the current situation in the Russian and Ukrainian fresh produce markets is available for subscribers of Fruit-Inform Weekly.

We would also remind you that all leading fruit and vegetable business representatives from about 15 countries throughout the globe (mainly from Ukraine, Russia, Moldova, the Netherlands, Germany and other European countries) will gather at the Eighth International Conference “Fruits & Vegetables of Ukraine – 2011. New Exporter”. This event will take place in conjunction with Fresh Produce Ukraine 2011 Fair, IEC, Kiev, Ukraine, November 30 – December 2, 2011.

In addition, the third conference day (December 2, 2011) will be fully dedicated to the Trade Forum with about 30 Ukrainian and Russian retail chains and traders (X5 Retail Group, Viktoriya, Tander, Auchan, Metro, ATB-Market, Kontinent, Karavan, Klass, Ukrainskiy Retail, Billa, Furshet, Velyka Kyshenya, Varus, Fozzy Group and many others).

To hold the Trade Forum in the most convenient way, the organizers will arrange the meetings according to the concerted schedule. The meetings schedule will be fully completed closer to the start of the conference. The format of meetings – 15-minute negotiations. Those participants, who have registered earlier than others, will be able to get more convenient schedule of meetings. Final list of retail chains and importers will be confirmed by November 15, 2011.

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The high cost of vegetables and fruits in almost every market is disappointing the buyers in the Federal Capital. According to a survey conducted here on Sunday, the prices of vegetables including onion, potato, garlic, beans, cauliflower and cucumber remained high even after passage of Eid-ul-Azha. However, the market sources held responsible the low supply against the rising demand, for this price hike.

The prices of vegetables including onion, potato, garlic and cauliflower remained at Rs. 60-70 per kg, Rs.30 to 40 per kg, Rs.90 per kg and Rs.60 per kg respectively. However, prices of tomato, spinach, and green coriander registered some decrease. The tomato was being sold at Rs.50-60 per kg as compared to Rs.100 plus during last week.

The prices of fruits including pomegranate, apple and guava was also out of the reach of common man as these were being sold at Rs.150, Rs.120 and Rs.60 per kilogram by the vendors. The prices of banana remained from Rs.40 to Rs.80 per dozen.

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Before we could enjoy the fruits of our labour, before even the dratted monkeys could enjoy the fruits of our labour, our mango trees refused to flower. The horticultural department suggested enriching the soil with nitrogen or potassium, I forget which. We did as instructed and nothing happened.

Then a tree-planting friend suggested we might be watering our trees too much, so they were putting forth shoots instead of flowers. Withhold water, he said and we did, not even yielding when the trees looked pathetic. No show. A few years passed and our mango trees burst into bloom. Then of course, our troubles with the monkeys began.

I’ve written off getting any fruits from the mango trees now. But I realized that none of our animal friends like citrus. I planted a whole bunch of kumquat seedlings and almost every one of them survived to adulthood. But no flowers. One website suggested exposing the roots. I didn’t think that was advisable. Another suggested spraying panchagavya on the trees.

Every traditional farmer has his own favourite recipe for the mixture, but generally it contains the five products from a cow: dung, urine, ghee, milk, and curd. All these ingredients are mixed together in an earthen pot and set aside to ferment. This concoction is then diluted in water and sprayed on trees. Farmers swear it does wonders for plant growth, improves the soil, controls pests and induces flowering.

A dear friend shared her favourite panchagavya recipe. She added jaggery, over-ripe bananas, sugarcane juice, coconut and its water, and crushed bean sprouts. Enthusiastically, I got down to preparing this magic, albeit strong-smelling, potion.

Buying most of the ingredients was expensive but at least easy. The real challenge was getting the cow piss. I had to be at the neighbour’s cow shed early in the morning before the animals were driven off for grazing. Eventually, bespattered but triumphant, I returned home with a bucket of urine.

The trees have to be sprayed every 15-20 days and I ran out of stock. If you don’t have cows, making this concoction is an involved process. I was too busy with other things to bother playing ‘horticultural witch’ again. So it was back to square one.

Someone said prune the trees, another said no. One said give them fertilizer, another said that would only make them grow. Contradictory advice meant I did nothing. And then a friend from Goa suggested I beat the trees and curse them loudly. “You must be joking,” I exclaimed. He swore it worked; he had seen it with his own eyes.

On a recent visit to Yercaud, we met a couple who had an orchard. I asked, “What do you do to make trees flower?” He went through the usual: watering and fertilizing. And then his demeanour became more serious and he suggested that when all else fails, I ought to beat and scold the tree.

A jack tree in his garden wasn’t flowering for many years. One night, when his neighbours couldn’t see him, he whacked the tree with an old broom while berating it for not flowering. “You have to do it seriously, angrily. You cannot laugh,” he cautioned. “And it worked,” he summed up triumphantly.

We heard the same story from Wynaad. This was not a local tale but pretty widespread. Clearly some trees need corporal punishment to make them behave well.

However, I’m not tempted to try this, whether night or day. It’s not the neighbours I dread but Rom. He can always be counted on to reveal any embarrassing incident to friends, especially city ones who have no clue about country life. How can I keep up the pretense of being angry with the trees when Rom’s laughter rang in my ears? Besides, he insists on calling my trees “come-squats”. I imagined he would regale someone with, “Then Janaki beat the come-squats. And guess what? They did diddly-squat.”

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