The fund is an international collaboration between the UK, Germany and Ethiopia that will protect some of Ethiopia’s most vulnerable workers Addis Ababa, October 29/2020: A landmark fund set up between the UK and Germany in collaboration with the Government of Ethiopia could save thousands of jobs in Ethiopia’s textile and garments industry, while helping to support the country’s economic recovery from COVID-19. With $6.5 million invested at launch, the partnership aims to help safeguard a critical industry and protect the livelihoods of those working within it.
The offer was made by a local trading house. The tender had closed earlier in October with the technical aspects of offers submitted before prices. rices offered by mainstream trading houses were mostly around $320 a tonne c&f including transport to inland destinations in Ethiopia. HAMBURG: The lowest price offered in the tender from an Ethiopian government agency to buy 400,000 tonnes of milling wheat was believed to be $243.90 a tonne c&f including transport to inland destinations for Russian wheat, European traders said on Thursday.
Family Milk, one of the top dairy product brands in Ethiopia processed by MB-PLC, is set to commence export of its new long shelf life product, company CEO said
Speaking to New Business Ethiopia, Hailu Eshetu, CEO of MB-PLC indicated that the company will soon be engaged in exporting dairy products, which has up to six months shelf life. “We have planned to join the export market since our establishment. Meanwhile commencing production of products with longer shelf life took us some time than we expected. Now we are producing UHT milks that have al east six months of shelf life and ready to start the export,” he said.
Located in Lafto Industrial zone in the capital, Addis Ababa, the dairy products processing company plans to start exporting products to different African countries includes: Sudan, Djibouti, Somaliland, among others. Ethiopia is one of sub Saharan African countries with a large potential in livestock, being first among African countries and 9th in the world. Livestock production in Ethiopia contributes about 16.5 percent of the national gross domestic product (GDP). However, the countries dairy industry is still in its infant stage.
Family Milk of Ethiopia to commence export
Some of the major constraints of the sector include lack of regulatory policy, lack of raw materials, and unfair competition from the informal sector, according to Mr. Hailu, who also mentioned similar cheaper imported products as challenge for the growth of Ethiopia’s dairy industry. He further noted that there are some golden opportunities to increase the milk consumption trend, which can boost income of smallholder farmers and pastoralists, as well as help to ensuring food security and create job opportunities.
Family Milk entered the market in 2002 producing various dairy products like; pasteurized milk, yoghurt, butter, and milk among others with a capacity of producing 70,000 liters per a day. It is working jointly with Singapore-based investment group Schulze Global Investments, which holds 45 percent shareholder. The remaining share is owned by the local firm MB-PLC, according to the CEO.
Durabilis – an international impact investment company, and the owner of fresh produce importer FairFruit in Belgium – is elated to announce the successful arrival of trial Hass avocado exports from Ethiopia.
The first container arrived in the UK on 20 September 2020, followed by a second shipment on 5 October 2020. The vast majority of the GlobalGAP-certified fruit has been sold to two leading importers who mainly serve UK retailers. Trial volumes have been offered to customers in Belgium and the Netherlands also. Separately, two trial airfreight shipments have been received positively in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.
Evert Wulfrank, CEO of Durabilis, explains: “Considering the agricultural potential of Ethiopia, this successful test with avocados creates a whole new perspective for a series of Ethiopian products that qualify for export to Europe. The 750km refrigerated railway connection from Modjo Dry Port in Ethiopia to the Port of Djibouti means exporting Ethiopian produce by seafreight has become a real option. The train offers a regular, reliable service lasting 30 hours, compared with two-to-three days by truck. Overall, the transit time from Ethiopia to Europe is now less than 30 days approximately, and there is the potential to reduce that to 24 days in the future.”
Wulfrank adds: “This is important for buyers that are looking for new and competitive sources of fresh fruits and veggies, and who, so far, have disregarded Ethiopia as a feasible option because the country lacked seafreight connections. We are looking for more avocado buyers in the UK, Europe and the Middle East because our projected production volumes will grow substantially and we will have a range of sizes.”
Ethiopia has considerable agricultural potential thanks to its fertile soils, a temperate climate, competitive labour costs, and plenty of available water within the Koga region (south of Bahir Dar) where Durabilis is working with smallholder growers in conjunction with its local subsidiary Koga Veg Agricultural Development.
Jan Michielsen, General Manager of Koga Veg in Ethiopia (owned by Durabilis), adds: “At this stage, our primary focus is to establish a commercially-viable business model; sourcing from smallholder avocado growers and supplying their fruit to the international market via a reliable logistics link. Already, those growers have adopted environmentally-friendly production methods that meet the quality requirements for the ready-to-eat sector in Europe, for which they receive a fair price. In the future, we’d like to invest further in more sustainable methods, efficient water usage, and, ultimately, in organic-certified production.”
The first of the two refrigerated containers carrying Ethiopian Hass avocados left Koga Veg’s packhouse on 21 August 2020; travelling by train from Modjo Dry Port to the Port of Djibouti before reefer shipment to Italy, and onto the UK by truck. Both loads contained 22.4 tonnes.
