Massimiliano Mazzanti, the Italian Ambassador to Uganda has said Ugandan coffee could fetch local farmers and the government more earnings if mechanisms are put in place to stop neighbouring countries from buying and rebranding it as their own. “You sell some of your coffee to the neighbouring countries and it is then rebranded and it becomes their coffee; yet it’s actually Ugandan coffee,” Mazzanti said on Nov.15 at his residence in Kampala. Mazzanti was responding to a question from The Independent about the sudden upsurge in interest in Ugandan coffee by Italy during a press briefing called to launch this year’s Italian Cultural and Culinary Week scheduled for Nov. the 22-26. “In Italy, it is against the law not to mention the origin of the coffee (you sell). We buy your coffee and we have to mention it in the packaging that it is Ugandan coffee,” he added, “This should be made clear in the East African trade laws. “You want to buy Ugandan coffee, it is alright but, you have to mention that it is Ugandan coffee,” he added. In August, this year, American broadcaster, Bloomberg, reported a rise in demand for Ugandan coffee in Italy where espresso lovers have contributed to an increase in exports of the coffee beans to the highest level in at least 30 years. Uganda overtook Vietnam to become the second-largest supplier of coffee to Italy for the first time this year, only behind Brazil. According to Bloomberg, total shipments jumped 21% to 6.5 million 60kg bags in the year through September—Uganda’s highest in three decades. A third of that went to Italy.
The Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA) said in September, this year, that Ugandan coffee is highly sought after globally because of its quality and unique attributes. The Italian ambassador noted that if Italian companies are now buying 40% of the Ugandan coffee production, they are not doing Uganda any favour or being stupid; they are buying some of the best coffee in eastern Africa. “We buy coffee from around the world. Italian multi-national coffee companies, Lavazza and Illy, send their teams of consultants around the world to taste coffee and verify the quality of the coffee. Ugandan coffee is among the best in Africa,” he said. Lily Ajarova, the Chief Executive Officer of the Uganda Tourism Board said Uganda’s trade balance with Italy had phenomenally jumped by two folds and reached US$ 173.6 million in 2020, thanks to coffee exports.
Italian cultural and culinary week
Meanwhile, Mazzanti said the annual Italian cultural and culinary week celebration is aimed at promoting Italian food and culinary traditions as a distinctive trait of Italian identity; and the spirit of the Italian culture. He said this year’s theme is: “Dante, the Italian.” The year 2021 marks the 700th anniversary of the death of the Italian poet, Dante Alighieri. The embassy will host a range of events, gastronomical and cultural, dedicated to Dante, the founding father of the Italian language. The culinary experience and presentation will focus on bringing together traditional and potential innovation of the Italian cuisine to promote awareness and optimization of food sustainability. The week will kick off with a two day culinary expedition at the Uganda Hotel and Tourism Institute in Jinja where Italian chef Lilian Novellino will deliver curated lessons on Florentine cuisine to culinary students.