This week, in a big win for the Uganda vanilla sector, the Minister of State for Agriculture made a declaration of harvest dates for vanilla, starting on June 15th for the first season and December 15th for the second season. This declaration will help reduce vanilla theft and the consequential early picking that results, which leads to lower quality vanilla. Creating conditions where vanilla can fully mature on the vine is an important step in the path to making Uganda a leader in quality vanilla.
The declaration comes after a 2-year process of collaborative work by VANEX (the Ugandan Vanilla Exporters Association), Catholic Relief Services in coordination with SVI, and the Commissioner for Agriculture, ultimately leading to the signing by the State Minister who is dedicated to working to grow the Ugandan vanilla industry. Read more about SVI’s role in supporting Ugandan vanilla and the government’s dedication to do so here and read the entirety of the Minister’s speech here.
SVI looks forward to continuing to work to support the Ugandan vanilla sector!