Air-freighters are reporting an over 20 percent drop in cargo volume from Tanzania.
The considerable decline of freight from the East African country was recorded between the ten months’ period between January and October 2022.
Apparently the drop is being blamed on the recent European Union (EU) flowers market disruptions.
The other factors include skyrocketing costs of energy and the drastic decline of avocado exports from the Southern Rungwe District of Mbeya Region.
That is according to Dr Jacqueline Mkindi, the Chief Executive Officer of TAHA.
TAHA is the Apex Body of Tanzania’s Private sector which is also in charge of the country’s horticultural industry.
As it happens, the Avocado season in Southern Highlands falls between January and October of each year and this is also the cargo-freight period under review.
The TAHA Executive points out that logistics overhead costs have surged by nearly 35 percent.
And the rise is due to the shooting up of global and domestic petroleum fuel prices.
Now, Dr Mkindi feels drastic measures should be taken immediately to curb the situation.
“There is the need to ease the exorbitant costs if we are to give our horticultural products a competitive edge for Tanzanian exports to stay afloat in the highly competitive Global markets.”
In normal times, the peak harvest season for avocados in Tanzania is between the months of June and August.
The trend decreases slightly between September and November before picking up again from January to March.
Avocados usually start to ripen after picking unless when kept in an atmosphere controlled room.
Despite flourishing in cold conditions, avocado fruits ripen faster in a warmer atmosphere.
At the moment there seems to be a rising demand for avocados in Tanzania which is slowly but surely also outpacing supply.
In fact, there are times when even Tanzania gets to import avocados from the neighboring Burundi, especially during its off-peak seasons between September and October.
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