Farmers in Uganda are progressively starting to embrace value addition and boost their profits by transforming raw primary agricultural products into processed goods with higher market value.
Reports show many farmers in Uganda face constraints in adding value and accessing markets for their produce, but that is becoming a thing of the past.
“For us in piggery farming, focus has been on only producing pork for the Ugandan market, but we have gone ahead to produce other products, including soap,” Dr. Emma Naluyima, a Ugandan veterinarian, urban farmer, businesswoman, educator, and 2014 best farmer, revealed.
Naluyima, who owns a farm spanning just one acre, is using pork lard (oil) to make the bar soap for the Ugandan market.
“We have even gone ahead and scented the soap. You will find soap with rosemary and other scents, and they are really pleasant.”
She says for those who have religious concerns, the chemical process used in making the soap ensures it can be used by anyone.
“It’s no longer pork lard but soap, and it actually washes very well.”
Dr. Esther Nakajubi, the Head of Non-Ruminants Programme at the National Animal Genetic Resources Centre and Data Bank, said over 20 value-added products can be produced from pigs.
“There is nothing you can throw away from a pig. You can even make fire extinguishers, as well as insulin for diabetes patients and so many other products.
“If your interest is in a particular product, go for the breed that will support that goal. For instance, if your interest is in lard, go for the large white breed, and when you add value to it, you will produce soap or body jelly from the lard. The product you want will drive your objective,” Nakajubi said.
