The Kenyan government, through the National Horticulture Task force (NHT), recently released Good Agricultural Practice (GAP) guidelines for avocados, pulses and peas. The guidance will help address challenges farmers face with regard to commodity quality and regulatory requirements, increasing market opportunities for the industry.

NHT is a multi-stakeholder forum representing around 20 organizations from the public and private sector in Kenya's fruit and vegetable sector. To ensure that Kenyan fruit and vegetable products meet market requirements and maintain its reputation as a leading fruit and vegetable grower and exporter by facilitating private-public sector dialogue.

According to NHT Chairman Clement Tulezi, the challenges facing the industry include compliance with sanitary and phytosanitary requirements, such as quarantine pest and pesticide residue limits, use of high-quality agricultural products, and the adoption of good hygienic practices. Epidemics of plant disease have prevented avocados from ripening or becoming hard. Some farmers have been harvesting underripe avocados, leading to a lackluster export market, and the GAP guidelines contain strategies to address these challenges.

Since the Chinese market was opened to Kenya in June last year, Kenyan avocado exports to China have continued to grow, but the local supply is very limited. In addition to issuing the avocado GAP guidelines, Kenya is also urging farmers to plant more avocado trees, and plans to double its export volume within five years.