How can we promote the consumption of agroecological products? 
BANNIERE ARTICLE

How can we promote the consumption of agroecological products? 

The Kilimo Endelevu Arusha project aims to transform the food system in the Arusha region of Tanzania. To achieve their vision, the project’s partners have developed a range of actions to link the farmers with consumers in the city of Arusha. 

For the partners in the Kilimo Endelevu Arusha project, the transformation of the food system is based on the sustainable management of natural resources and the agro-ecological transition of farms – but not only! 

Farmers are supported through a participatory guarantee system, which provides an alternative to certify the agroecological production supplying local markets. This certification is based on active participation of stakeholders and built on a foundation of trust, social network and knowledge exchange.  

Marketing committees have been set up and trained by MVIWAARUSHA within each of the farmer groups we support. The members of these committees are responsible for liaising with sellers in the city of Arusha and researching the selling prices of agricultural products.  

The project’s partners have helped them by identifying and supporting several marketing opportunities for agroecological products.  

Short circuit via fruit and vegetable vendors 

The project’s beneficiaries include fruit and vegetable vendors with market stalls or roadside stands, who have been put in touch with the farmers receiving support. These vendors have been made aware of the quality and origin of their produce, and coached on the layout of their stands, hygiene practices and waste management. They were also provided with small equipment (display and storage crates) and signs boards indicating the quality of the products sold.  

  • Currently the program is working with 9 street vendors around Arusha city and 40 market vendors in the public markets of Kilombero, Samunge and Soko Kuu all in Arusha. 

A farmers’ kiosk – Smart KIOSK – at the Ngaramtoni market 

A kiosk dedicated to the sale of agroecological products has been set up in the Ngaramtoni open market. The kiosk is run by a farmer who is a member of MVIWAEKE local network (member of MVIWAARUSHA based in Ekenywa village). The KIOSK runner has been capacitated on entrepreneurship, business management and marketing by MVIWAARUSHA. He has also been linked to producer groups for the supply of agroecological products. The Smart KIOSK is used as point for selling agroecological products while sensitizing the public on consumption of safe and healthy farm produce. On the other hand, the Smart KIOSK is used as a catalyst for changing mindset of other vegetables and fruits vendors at the market who display their products on the ground.  

MESULA farmers’ market 

Since 2023, several of the project’s beneficiary farmers have been supported to participate in the Arusha farmers’ market organized every first Saturday of the month. They also sell through the MESULA shop which is currently managed and operated in partnership with Glen Farm Shop, an individual farming enterprise dealing with production and selling of fresh and health organic vegetables and fruits. Today, farmers from the 3 groups of Oldonyowas village (Shifura, Emburis and Ovegro) take part every month to the monthly farmers’ market and supply agroecological product to the MESULA shop which operates in a daily basis. 

In 2023, sales of their vegetables and fruit totaled over 1,000,000 Tanzanian Shillings which includes farmers produce supplied to MESULA shop and the Arusha farmers’ market. 

These activities, aimed at diversifying and securing marketing opportunities for agro-ecological produce, were supported by a poster campaign to raise consumer awareness of market hygiene and draw their attention to the consumption of local produce. The awareness-raising materials were produced by Terre Nourricière

The Kilimo Endelevu Arusha project 

The Kilimo Endelevu Arusha 2022-2025 project is the 1st phase of a 9-year program whose aim is to contribute to the resilience of the populations of the Arusha region in Tanzania in the face of climatic and environmental disruption, through support for family farms to ensure their sustainability and increased contribution to the area’s food and nutritional sovereignty. 

This project is the fruit of a partnership between the CARI association, the Belgian NGO Iles de Paix, the Tanzanian NGO RECODA and the farmers’ organization MVIWAARUSHA. To achieve their objective, the partners act simultaneously on several links in the food system: at plot and territorial level, from production to consumption, and with the diversity of actors playing a role in the food system. 

The Kilimo Endelevu Arusha project is supported by the French Development Agency (AFD), the Belgian Cooperation (DGD), the MIROVA Foundation and the Occitanie Region

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