Farmers urged to uproot infected coffee trees #tanzania

COFFEE farmers in Kagera Region have been advised to
uproot and destroy by burning coffee trees already infected
with Coffee Fusarium Wilt (CFW).
A researcher from TACRI- Maruku, Mr Nyabis Ngh'oma,
said while efforts were being taken to combat the disease,
farmers should uproot and destroy infected coffee trees.
He noted that research on CFW started in 2004 while in
2011 the government approved the introduction of resistant
coffee varieties which would be supplied to farmers.
According to Mr Ngh'oma, a total of 22,300 improved coffee
varieties had already been produced at the TACRI-Maruku
coffee nursery while another 1,300 varieties were produced
at Kishoju nursery, in Muleba District.
"The target is to produce over 60,000 improved coffee
varieties which will be supplied to farmers," he said. The
researcher said the coffee varieties would be ready by the
end of October, this year, while the exercise to supply them
to farmers would start next year.
Meanwhile, lack of copyright for Tanzania's coffee exports
has given room to some countries to exploit the situation by
selling Tanzania produce on international markets as theirs,
Tanzania Coffee Board (TCB) Director General, Mr Adolf
Kumburu, has said.
Addressing a stakeholders meeting in Bukoba municipality
recently, Mr Kumburu said Tanzania was among countries
producing the best coffee, allaying fears that low prices
were the main cause for increased smuggling of the crop to
neighbouring countries.
Mr Kumburu conceded that Tanzania was losing a big
chunk of the crop it produced through smuggling, calling for
concerted efforts to control the vice.
"The government, in collaboration with TCB and other
stakeholders, is working on modalities to ensure that coffee
exports fetch better prices in an effort to motivate the
farmers," he said. He appealed to coffee farmers in Kagera,
Kilimanjaro, Mbeya, Mara and Arusha regions to double
production.
He also appealed to Tanzanians to cultivate a culture of
drinking coffee with their daily menu. "Coffee is an essential
food commodity. People should take coffee as much as
possible," he said.
TCB board chairman, Mr Juma Ngasongwa, appealed to
leaders and farmers to adopt a common strategy aimed at
doubling coffee production by 2017. According to Mr
Ngasongwa, Tanzania produced an average of one million
bags of coffee per year compared to Vietnam (30 million)
and Brazil (50 million bags).
During his recent tour of Kagera region, the Deputy Minister
for Agriculture, Food Security and Cooperatives, Mr Godfrey
Zambi, assured farmers that the government was finalizing
plans to establish a Crop Stabilization Fund (CSF) to enable
farmers in the country enjoy their sweat.