Bad for business
January 3, 2012
Julius Kafeero is a grasshopper catcher from the Ugandan capital Kampala. He started his business three years ago, he told Deutsche Welle as he prepared the tools of his trade. "The traps consist of poles that hold the iron sheeting over the tanks. Above the tanks, we have very bright lights which attract the grasshoppers. Because the iron sheets are slippery, the grasshoppers end up sliding into the tanks. We pick them out and head to the market." The electric light is vital for his business.
But lately there hasn't been sufficient light to attract the grasshoppers.
A country in the dark
Uganda has the worst electricity supply in East Africa. Power rationing has become a common feature with some Kampala suburbs having to contend with blackouts lasting more than 48 hours. This has forced many in the grasshopper business, like Kafeero, to seek alternative sources of power. Fuel generators are the most popular choice.
Sam Lukenge started dealing in grasshoppers in 1993. Now he is seriously considering laying down his tools. He told Deutsche Welle of his frustrations at Nakasero market in central Kampala. "Everything we use to harvest these grasshoppers is expensive, especially electricity. When we doubled our prices to compensate, our sales fell off drastically." Lukenge complained about the unreliability of the power supply and said the use of generators was costing him a lot of money. Lukenge and his fellow traders also have to drive many kilometers, hoping they will be able to sell their stock the same day.
Preserving the insects for a longer period is not an option. If they are not sold within one or two days, they have to be disposed of.
Hoping for a brighter future
Despite the rising prices, the lure of a freshly fried grasshopper is too strong to resist for many Ugandans. Juliet Nakalyango, who also sells her wares at Nakasero market, said she felt very lucky this year. "Customers are still buying my grasshoppers even though I doubled the prices."
Grasshopper vendors are a common sight in the streets of Kampala, carrying in one hand plastic buckets full of fried grasshoppers, and in the other, spoons and polythene bags. A spoonful of grasshoppers now costs about 40 euro cents ($0.5). Last season the same amount would have bought a whole plastic cupful.
Author: Alex Gitta, Kampala /cm
Editor: Susan Houlton / rm