Red Gold Makes the Case for Smarter Agri Business Strategy

May 23 , 2026. By Mekonnen Solomon ( Mekonnen Solomon (ehdaplan@gmail.com) is a horticulture export coordinator and senior staff of the Ministry of Agriculture. )

Strawberries offer a high-return and low-land-footprint opportunity, helping to meet forex reserve accumulation, rural income, technology transfer, and better nutrition. Bringing the "Red Gold" into flagship policy may not replace food-security priorities, but it would make them more efficient. The data are compelling, and the strategic rationale should be clear. What is missing is not agronomy, demand or proof of concept, but policy recognition, argued Mekonnen Solomon (ehdaplan@gmail.com), an agricultural economist and a former director at the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA).

Volcanic soils, cool nights and temperate days have given strawberry growers the conditions to produce premium fruits, marketed as “Red Gold”, while blueberries are cast as “Blue Gold.” Yet, the crop remains outside policymakers' flagship agricultural programs, despite a record that compares favourably with better-known staples and export crops.

The case is not built on sentiment, inasmuch as it rests on foreign exchange, productivity per hectare, and the time to return on investment. About 521hct of commercial strawberry farms generated roughly 25 million dollars in export earnings over the past five years. The national avocado program, covering about 31,000hct, brought in 7.41 million dollars during the same period. On scarce land and limited capital, strawberries deliver far higher returns per hectare and a stronger claim on public support.

The longer record tells the same story. In the five years beginning in 2013, strawberries accounted for only 3.8pc of the 202,130 tns in fruit export volume. They accounted for nearly 30pc of fruit export revenues, generating 25.15 million dollars. Their unit value, about 3,375 dollars a ton, was well above bananas at 248 dollars, avocados at 405 dollars, and the fruit category average of 438 dollars. The crop generated seven to eight times more revenue per ton, easing pressure on bulk logistics and airfreight while increasing foreign currency per shipment.

Recent figures reinforce this pattern. In 2022, fresh strawberry exports exceeded 1.7 million kilograms and earned 5.34 million dollars, mainly from premium Gulf markets. A year later, the “other fresh fruit” category, dominated by strawberries, contributed 5.08 million dollars. These numbers show a value-to-volume balance suited to domestic constraints, where land, foreign currency, refrigerated transport and cargo space remain binding limits on expansion.

Avocado projects have their own logic, due to scale, domestic processing and a 15-year national program. But public choices carry opportunity costs. When lower-unit-value crops receive more policy attention than crops that generate high foreign exchange earnings from a small footprint, the case should be tested through cost-benefit analysis and clear measures of marginal efficiency.

For farmers, a one-eighth-acre (505.86Sqm) plot can produce 30Kg to 50Kg a week within 90 days and remain productive for two to three years. That creates fast cash flow, household nutrition and labour demand in harvesting and packing, especially for women.

The production base already exists in the highlands around Holeta and Ejera, in Oromia Regional State, with cool nights and moderate daytime temperatures that improve flavour, Brix levels (a scale that measures the percent by weight of dissolved soluble solids like sugars) above eight and market appeal. The sector grew partly from former rose-flower operations, leaving skills in protected cultivation, post-harvest handling, and export logistics.

At Zequala Horti Plc, a Phytophthora outbreak (a fungus-like microorganism that attacks plant roots and stems) led to collaboration with Dutch experts and the construction of a raised-gutter hydroponic demonstration greenhouse. The episode shows how disease risk can push growers toward precision agriculture, lower water use and more consistent quality.

Ethiopia is already East Africa’s leading commercial strawberry producer, with stronger export earnings and unit values near or above 3,000 dollars a ton. Kenya produces about 533tns a year with modest export earnings, while Uganda’s is negligible. Varieties from Rotmi to Fragaria Soraya and from Dorina, Florida Brilliance to Rowena have shown yields of 30tns to 43tns a hectare, with adaptability and disease resistance.

Air links enable delivery to Europe within 24 hours, while proximity to the Middle East helps keep costs lower. Cool Port Addis at Modjo can support sea freight for IQF and processed products, adding flexibility and reducing dependence on air cargo.

Demand is not limited to the Gulf, however. Western Europe, including the United Kingdom (UK), the Netherlands, France and Belgium, offers service and premium retail channels. Branding the crop as “Ethiopian Highland Strawberries,” backed by GLOBAL G.A.P. and other certifications, could raise margins. Adding blueberries and raspberries would position Ethiopia within a broader berry portfolio shaped by health-conscious consumers and higher-value retail demand.

Indeed, strawberries offer a nutritional argument, as they provide 568pc more Vitamin C than avocados, while carrying less sugar, containing far less saturated fat, and offering a favourable caloric density of 32 calories per 100 grams. Their anthocyanins support cardiovascular health and anti-inflammatory benefits, while avocados contribute fibre and fats.

However, the policy gap remains striking as national programs for wheat, avocado, sorghum and enset receive resources for research, inputs, subsidies and infrastructure, often on the strength of volume and food-security goals. Strawberries are excluded, although they offer foreign-exchange intensity, rapid returns, technological upgrading, jobs and nutrition gains. Selection criteria should be transparent and measured against each item's potential to generate foreign exchange, net present value, employment and income multipliers, nutritional cost-effectiveness, climate resilience and risk-adjusted returns. Regular audits against regional and global benchmarks would make resource allocation more accountable.

Strawberries should be included as a dedicated component in the next 10-year development plan for national agriculture, with ring-fenced funding and a clear index for performance. Subsidised nucleus-outgrower schemes could link commercial producers such as Metrolax Flower, Tal Flower, Euro Flora, Zequala Horti and Bahir Dar Fresh Fruits Plc with cooperatives. Public-private partnerships should accelerate the adoption of hydroponics, precision fertigation, and resilient varieties.

Investments in branding, certification, and value-added processing, including individual quick freezing (IQF), a specialised food preservation method in which each piece of food is frozen independently of the others, juices, and powders, would extend shelf life and margins. Cold-chain projects should be completed, using Cool Port Addis to build air-sea competitiveness. Independent economic evaluations should also guide priorities.

Such steps would help attract foreign direct investment, as urged by recent commitments from African Farming Industries (AFI), and strengthen Ethiopia’s position as East Africa’s high-value horticultural exporter. Visionary leadership and decisive execution are now needed to match public incentives with evidence and to stop treating a proven export earner as a side crop in a country short of hard currency and jobs, too.

PUBLISHED ON May 23,2026 [ VOL 27 , NO 1360]