Africa-Press – Angola. The municipality of Humpata, in Huíla Province, will harvest up to 350 tons of apples by next May, a region with productive potential for tropical fruits in the country, due to its altitude.
The harvest, which began last January, registered a “slight” reduction due to the dismemberment of Palanca, a former commune that became a municipality, according to the authorities.
In an interview this Wednesday, the head of the municipality’s agriculture section, Helena José, said that the production is flooding local markets, as well as those in other parts of Namibe, Benguela, Cunene and Luanda.
She stressed that apples are produced in almost the entire municipality, but the Neves commune continues to be the region with the greatest prominence in this production. In addition to apples, the source stated that 200 tons of pears were also produced, in a harvesting process that began in December.
She stated that there is no total production area, because each family has between 10 and 150 fruit trees on their land, in a production carried out by farms and farming families.
Data from the Huíla Farming and Fisheries Office indicate that the province produced 3,903 tons of fruit in the 2022/2023 campaign, and in the following campaign, 2023/2024, this production reached 6,943 tons, not counting the commercial harvest, with a good part coming from Humpata.
The Humpata plateau is located at an altitude of 2,000 to 2,300 meters and has a temperate climate. Agriculture, especially the production of tropical fruits, tourism and livestock farming are its main economic activities.
