The Establishment and Running of a Papaw Plantation

Abstract

The preparation of this section has for certain reasons devolved upon the present writer, who wishes, however, to acknowledge much information. given by Mr. JVR Brown, Senior Agricultural Officer, Moshi, Mr. JK Robertson, Agricultural Officer, Arusha, and Mr. A. Ghikas of Narumu Estate, Moshi. The subject of papaw cultivation and papain production has already been described in this journal by Sanders and Robertson [3], and some of the information below has been taken from their statements. The papaw is a common and popular fruit, but in recent years it has also become an important plantation crop on account of the papain obtained from the latex in the fruit. The crop is now well established in the Northern Province of Tanganyika Territory, and to a less extent in other parts of East Africa. It is essentially a non-native crop, and does not lend itself to cultivation by Africans, chiefly on account of the care required, but also because of the. necessity for flue-drying. Papaws were first grown for latex in Tanganyika in the late twenties, but it was not until the late thirties that their cultivation became extensive. The output from the territory for the period September, 1946, to August, 1947, was 2,573 cwt., valued at 053,851. The high price for the product was the chief incentive to the industry; this reached a maximum of Sh. 30 per pound in 1947. A fall in price in the latter half of 1947 to Sh. 21 per pound caused a slowing down in the planting of new fields. The crop suffered during the past year from unfavourable weather, and a repetition of this in 1948 would discourage many growers; that is, however, considered to be unlikely. The establishment of a papaw plantation makes considerable calls on labour, but while high prices have been the rule, sufficiently high wages have been paid to attract the labour force required. As regards the outlook for this crop, the most important factor would appear to be the price of the product. Such factors as markets, weather, labour, pests and diseases are most unlikely to affect the maintenance of a considerable acreage under the crop in East