Kenya cashes in on China's newfound love of avocados

Lu Cuifeng is out to delight the palates of the Chinese with food sourced from Kenya.

Vice chairwoman of the China-Africa Business Council, she arranged the first avocado exports from Kenya to China last year. This year, her sights are set on octopus, squid and other seafood.

“China is definitely a huge market,” said Lu, an entrepreneur who has been doing business with African countries for nearly 15 years.

Called the “African queen” by her friends, she first engaged with the continent in a logistics role.

“It all just evolved so naturally,” she said.

Chinese infrastructure projects in Kenya, such as development of railways and ports, have unlocked market opportunities for players in the industry chain.

In 2009, Lu expanded her business network with the establishment of Shanghai Smart Cargo Supply Chain Management Co, which focuses on engineering, procurement and construction services.

The company now has offices in more than 10 African countries, including Kenya, Tanzania and South Africa.

“Basically, we transported construction materials and equipment for Chinese firms involved in African infrastructure projects,” Lu said.

Courtesy of Lu Cuifeng

Lu Cuifeng (in white) at a ceremony marking the first shipment of fresh avocados from Africa to China.

China-Africa relations have grown closer since the 2013 launch of the “Belt and Road” initiative – an ambitious Chinese program to foster economic and cultural ties with Central Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Europe.

“It’s time to bring something back from Africa to China,” Lu said, explaining the new focus on agricultural products like coffee, nuts and fruits. “They are what Chinese consumers like.”

In 2015, she established Shanghai Greechain Information Science & Technology Ltd to export agricultural products from Africa to China. Her most prominent deal to date is the export of Kenyan avocados.

China is now the second-largest market for African agricultural exports, and Kenya is the largest exporter of avocados on the continent.

Avocados, relatively unknown in China until more recent years, have been gaining popularity in China. Though the domestic market is dominated by avocados from South America, Lu said the Kenyan fruit is bigger in size and better in taste.

“Kenya’s climate is tailor-made for avocados to grow,” she said.

Xinhua

Kenyan avocados displayed at the fifth China International Import Expo.

In 2018, Greechain introduced Kenyan avocados at the first China International Import Expo in Shanghai. They attracted a lot of attention.

A trade delegation led by Kenya’s president signed an agreement with Greechain to export Kenyan agricultural products to China.

In August 2022, the first shipment of fresh avocados from Kenya was shipped to China.

“It took us nearly three-and-a-half years,” Lu said. “The business was new to everyone, and the whole process was beset with difficulties.”

It took the company more than half a year to negotiate tariff reductions with Chinese customs, finally getting them cut from 30 percent to 7 percent.

Quarantine was another big issue.

“We introduced technology that helped Kenyan producers fumigate in order to meet China’s strict pest control standards,” she said.

Currently, China takes nearly 30 percent of Kenya’s avocado exports.

The trade has increased Kenya’s foreign-exchange earnings and benefited the country’s farmers, Lu said. Kenyan agricultural authorities estimate avocado exports to China will increase the annual income of local farmers by 30-50 percent.

Xinhua

Female workers at Sunripe factory in Limuru Town, Kenya, package fresh avocados destined for the Chinese market.

Richard Wafula, one of Greechain’s partners in Kenya, is certainly reaping the benefits.

He began planting avocados in 2019, after learning about the enormous demand for the fruit in the Chinese market. Currently, he owns more than 5,500 avocado trees.

“I’m very optimistic about the market,” he told People’s Daily.

Avocado farmer Richard Tuwei has expanded the size of his orchard to meet the rising demand from China.

“In the past, I had to borrow money to pay for my children’s education,” he told the newspaper. “Now my income is enough to cover my family’s expenses. Our lives have been greatly improved.”

China has granted market access to 16 agricultural products from 11 African countries, and offered zero-tariff treatment for some poorer countries.

Tang Renjian, China’s minister of agriculture and rural affairs, said agricultural investment by Chinese enterprises in Africa reached 12.8 billion yuan (US$1.8 billion) by the end of 2021, creating more than 30,000 jobs.

“As we earn from Africa, we should also repay Africa,” Lu said.

Her company employs hundreds of locals in Africa. In Kenya and Tanzania, nearly one third of workers are women.