Pineapple Exports Sweeten Cameroonian Economy

The Council on Competitivity of Cameroon recently released its Report of the Competitivity of the Cameroonian Economy 2023. From the report, we learn that pineapple exports represent a sweet deal for Cameroon.

The main destination markets are France (59%) and Belgium (32%) and exports in 2023 increased by 7.3% year-on-year. The USA is also emerging as a market with huge potential. In the global ranking, Cameroon is the 37th largest export of pineapple in the world with 0.1% share of the global market and trails behind Cote d’Ivoire which is ranked 19th with 0.4% share. The tiny global shares can be interpreted as leaving much room for improvement and growth if certain challenges are addressed.

Some of the challenges resides in agricultural know-how. A FAO report uncovered that the yield per hectare in Cameroon is barely half of that in Costa Rica. Costa Rica serves as the benchmark for pineapple production as the top exporter of the juicy produce. Costa Rica and Philippines are the top pineapple producers in 2023 and control 49.2% and 14.8% respectively of the global pineapple market.

In conclusion, African pineapple must work harder to close the gap with the top producers in an increasingly competitive world. New varieties with higher yields which are resilient to climate change could be introduced. The introduction of drone technologies and mechanization might be necessary to scale up production.