Farm Leaders Focus on Sustainability

So far, 2012 has proved to be a difficult year for Uganda's coffee industry, with a halt in coffee purchases and a sharp decline in prices. During a training workshop on 20 March for the National Union of Coffee Agribusinesses and Farm Enterprises, farm leaders learned about the value-chain, export marketing and procedures, and traceability (4C). They also discussed the main challenges to the sector, including price fluctuations, insufficient training, climate changes, a lack of farm tools, and reduced soil fertility, among others.
The 29 participants, who came from Nyapea, Jangokoro and Pacofa, shared ideas about possible solutions to the problems confronting the coffee industry and agreed that sustainability is vital. At the same time, they identified areas of deficiency, such as insufficient measures to protect employee health and safety, threats to natural forests, and the lack of a waste water-treatment system in a region where wet processing is used.