How to Start Tomato Farming in Cameroon (Complete Guide)

Tomato is one of the most essential cooking ingredients in Cameroon. Eighty percent of our food is never complete without tomatoes. We use it in cooking stews, soups, salads, portages, and virtually every food imaginable on the land. It goes with everything. So good that none of our traditional foods ever rejected tomatoes. This report explains how to start lucrative tomato farming in Cameroon.

How to Start Tomato Farming in Cameroon?

Tomato farming is very simple. Anyone can do it in any capacity, either in the backyard or commercial. Growing tomatoes is much more rewarding than you could ever imagine. Tomato can be developed around the year, especially in places like Foumbot, where an irrigation system is specifically made for it. In other areas, it is best cultivated during the rainy season.

Step 1: Pick up The Best Species – The improved yield species

In this case, I will recommend the Roma variety. The Roma tomato, known for its size and redness, is a plum tomato that is very popular in the Cameroon markets. This specie can be used both for canning and producing tomato paste. It is also commonly found in supermarkets in some countries like the US. Roma tomatoes are also known as Italian tomatoes; it is also called Italian plum tomatoes.

Roma specie very unique because of its long shelf life, hardback, and low water content, which enables it to last longer after harvest. A paint rubber of the seed costs about 9,500 XAF.

Step 2: Prepare The Nursery

This can be done around March/April when the rain is just beginning in most parts of the country. You can use your backyard for the nursery or any other piece of suitable land.

Tomatoes do very well in most soil types in Cameroon but better in a black, loose, loamy soil. Prepare the ground by clearing the grasses and rubble, and loosen the dirt with hand trowels and hoes.

Remove the seeds from the tomatoes and spread them on the prepared soil. You can cover it with dry grasses to prevent the loss of moisture from the ground and prevent birds, ants fowl from eating off the tomato farming seeds.

Within 5-7 days, you will see it germinating. Wait another five days before you remove the dry grasses to allow for proper growth. Leave it for another month before transplanting.

Step 3: Transplant to The Garden/Farm

The final journey will be moving it to the permanent farm where they would grow to maturity and production.

Transplant is best done with hands for better results. You need to be careful with the tender plan to avoid breaking it. If your farm is too big that you can't do the transplanting alone, hire laborers according to your need.

Open the soil with a piece of small wood, insert the seedling into the hole and cover it with the loose ground. The tomato plant is very tender and fragile; it is best transplanted the same day you uprooted it from the nursery to avoid dehydration and fatigue.

Step 4: Weed and Apply Fertilizer

After two months after the transplant, it will be time for weeding. Hire laborers to do the weeding while you supervise to ensure that your tomato plants are not damaged while removing weeds.

After the first weed, it will be time to apply Fertilizer to help replenish the soil nutrients the weeds take. To grow successfully, tomatoes need nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, potash, calcium, magnesium, and other trace minerals. It's always best to have your soil tested to check for nutrient and pH levels. Use Fertilizer that supplies those vital nutrients

Step 5: Harvest Your Tomatoes

Tomato is harvested in matches; the moment you start gathering, you'll continue every week till the end of the season. Usually, it will keep producing till the dry season, when the plant will die off due to the scorching heat.

The first harvest starts within three months after planting. If you plan by April, you should expect your first harvest to begin by June/July. From then, it will continue till November/December.

Step 6 Market Your Tomatoes

Preparing your marketing well before harvesting is essential. Look for who or where to supply the product. This is because Tomato is a perishable product unless you have a built storage system.

Douala and Yaounde are primary markets for fresh tomatoes and other vegetables. Why? It's purely dominated by the North-westerners who major in this farming, harvesting cash over the years. 90% of vegetables consumed in Douala and Yaounde are brought in from the North-West.

There is a need for innovative entrepreneurs to see the opportunity for big business and big money in this sector. We have reached the point where we need young, savvy entrepreneurs to break into this sector and produce and deliver quality, hygienic tomatoes at affordable prices.

The money is in the mass market, and we need to start seeing it and working that way. Produce more, sell less amount, and make more money. The mass market remains the key to success in Agribusiness, and I would rather sell 1,000 baskets a day for 7,000 XAF each than just 100 baskets a day for 10,000 XAF per basket.

If you start preparing now for this venture, you will harvest cash all season. Feel free to ask questions using the comment section and contribute your knowledge to help us grow in this tomato farming business.

Benefits Of Tomato Farming

Health

This wonderful fruit berry is an excellent vitamin C and beta-carotene source. It's a powerful source of vitamin E and enhances the eyes' health and sharpness. Tomatoes' deep redness means it's an excellent source of antioxidant agents. You can never go wrong with tomatoes as far as nutrition and fitness are concerned.

Profit

The market is always there for tomatoes in Cameroon. Why not? A product that is consumed by nearly 200 million people; no amount you produce will ever be enough. In 2015, Cameroon imported 35,809 tonnes of processed Tomato was worth over 7 Billion XAF. That was in addition to the massive tonnes produced locally in the North West.

Check Out: How To Start Pepper Farming in Cameroon.

Conclusion

What exactly are Cameroonians doing that a whooping amount of 7 billion XAF has to go to other countries' economies for a product that does very well in almost every Cameroon soil? As we prepare for this year's farming season, we must ask ourselves this question.

If you have 4 million francs CFA and invest it in tomato farming this season, you will double that investment within nine months.