Africa-Press – Uganda. Nestled about 15km away from the Kampala City centre in Buyala, Mpigi district along the Mityana road is Masheda Foods, a facility beating the odds to add value onto catfish to increase its market value beyond its raw form.
The facility which sits on over six acres offers catfish breading, growing, harvesting and then adding value onto it through filleting, freezing and creating fish-based products like fish meal or fish oil.
“We realised that apart from eating it raw, there are many products we can get out of catfish and are more nutritious. We decided to venture into adding value onto catfish,” says Marvin Lwasa, the Managing Director of Masheda Holding Ltd.
“Our idea was that these are things we see everyday but don’t focus on them. We think catfish is one item where you can get numerous products.”
To realise the dream of adding value onto cat fish, Masheda Foods constructed a state-of-the-art catfish processing factory.
The facility is where freshly harvested catfish are transformed into convenient, ready-to-cook products without compromising their nutritional integrity.
The factory produces smoked fish, fish oil sausages, and burgers among others
“Value-added processing is a game-changer for the catfish industry. It allows us to deliver high- quality catfish to consumers in urban and rural areas alike. Our smoked catfish, for example, is not only delicious but also retains all the nutritional benefits of fresh catfish,” says Charles Wamulambi, the quality assurance manager at the Masheda factory.
Wamulambi says at the factory, they make sure standards are followed to ensure the quality of the catfish products is not compromised.
He adds that apart from traditional products, they have explored ways to incorporate catfish into everyday meals for Ugandans and those abroad for nutritious and alternative food away from processed meat.
“The products are particularly appealing to busy families and young professionals who are looking for healthy, easy-to-prepare meal options,” Wamulambi says.
Market
According to the company’s Managing Director, apart from the local market in Uganda, they have heavily invested into the Democratic Republic of Congo where they have a heavy presence.
“Since catfish is staple food in Western and Central Africa, DRC is one of our biggest markets where we have over 60 stores in Kinshasa alone,” Lwasa says.
He adds that Nairobi is another big market for them as they seek to track Belgium, UK and France as potential markets for their catfish products.
Lwasa says with Uganda’s lakes being depleted, it is high time government through the Ministry of Agriculture encouraged fish farming in the country.
“This the time the Ministry of Agriculture churned out as much information as possible and imploring youths to go into aquaculture and save the environment. This way we shall create employment for our youths but also get foreign exchange in form of selling fish products abroad,” Lwasa notes.
He adds that Masheda Foods is committed to supporting these efforts to meet both local and international standards.
“We are excited to meet the evolving needs of health-conscious consumers with innovative and nutritious catfish products, all while advancing our sustainability efforts.”
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