Ethiopia’s Chickpea Industry Sees Boost by Large-Scale Initiative

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – A Guts Agro Industry initiative means that Ethiopia’s staple Shiro dish will soon be pre-packaged and available in supermarkets and shops after the company secured 66,000 dollars in funding from USAID.

Shiro, made from roasted ground chickpeas, has long been produced by Ethiopian businesses relying predominantly on traditional methods. Guts, a 20 million Br factory, currently produces maize-based Lembo snacks, iodized salt and, in collaboration with PEPSICO, Ready to Use Supplementary Food (RUSF).

The company have taken a step forward in the production process for Shiro, establishing a separate line at its factory that is dedicated to two types of the meal. One of the Shiro products is pure chickpea powder, while the other is meten (balanced), which is a ready-to-cook mix that includes various spices. The latter has been named Yanet shiro.

Guts Agro Industry was established in 2005. Four years later it won a contract with the World Food Program, through which, between 2009 and 2013, it was able to deliver a total of 280,000ql of RUSF, an average of nearly 6,000 quintals a month.

Read more at: Addis Tribune