Pineapple sector in Guinea: the “Baroness” wants to restore its letters of nobility (1/3)
Audio 02:21
Wayabou Bangoura, pineapple producer and Moussa Camara president of the Federation of Planters of Lower Guinea.
© RFI / Carol Valade
By: Carol Valade Follow
5 mins
The "Baronne de Guinée", a variety of pineapple, made the heyday of Guinean agriculture in the 1950s. The country was then the leading exporter of tropical fruits to France.
But after independence, production collapsed.
In recent years, producers and the government have been working hard, with the support of international cooperation, to relaunch this very promising sector.
Publicity
From our special correspondent in Kindia,
Pineapple tasting in the open field, in the company of Moussa Camara, president of the Planters Federation.
Hidden under a thorny and orange color, its flesh, tender and juicy, offers a subtle blend of sugar and acidity.
“
Really succulent, it's a little overripe, but it's excellent,
” notes Moussa Camara.
The world market is dominated by the Costa Rican, Thai and Brazilian giants.
But Guinea intends to find a place there.
“
The comparative advantage in this market is what the Baroness gives us.
A specific Guinean product.
“, He assures.
► Also to listen: The Guinean pineapple soon back on the French markets
The glory of old
Its cultivation was introduced in the 1930s. Kindia has the ideal combination of water and sun, a stable temperature between 25 and 30 degrees, as well as sandy loam soils.
“
Guinea was once the leading producer and exporter of bananas and pineapples in AOF
(French West Africa, Editor's note).
It then exported up to a hundred thousand tons of bananas and fifty thousand tons of fresh pineapple
(per year, Editor's note).
It is a culture that has made this country prosperous
, ”says Moussa Camara.
Reclaiming the market
But after independence, the closure of the French market discouraged planters.
Collectivization of land disrupts production.
In 2015, exports are at their lowest level.
The following year, the presidency, the prime minister's office and international cooperation decided to relaunch the sector.
“
Today, we are at 50 tonnes per hectare, if we sell in Dakar we can sell 450 to 500 CFA francs per kilo, so 4 million per ton!
», Hopes Wayabou Bangoura, farmer.
By focusing on quality, the Baroness could conquer the market for fresh pineapples, delivered by air.
Steps are underway to obtain a protected geographical indication.
But this requires meeting the draconian requirements of European import standards.
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Guinea
Economy Africa
Agriculture and Fishing
Trade and Trade