The Kenyan government is set to open a mango processing plant in January with expectations 1,000 farmers will sign on as suppliers, website Businessdailyafrica.com reported.

The story reported the Coast Development Authority (CDA) project in Hola, Tana River County, would benefit local growers who have been losing money due to the lack of a proper market and poor infrastructure.

CDA agriculture officer Mcharo Mwalugha said the KES75 million (US$842,697) project would have a daily mango output of 30 metric tons (MT), the story reported.

"Our initial aim was to process ready-to-drink juice, but we are also working on the possibility of producing pulp for other juice processors," he was quoted as saying.

The story added the plant would process tomatoes and pawpaws, and would also include a honey refinery.

A recent Agricultural Business Development (ABD) study found 80,000 households in the region are involved in mango farming. One researcher involved in the study told the website there were 1.3 million trees under cultivation in the area, while the industry was worth around KES260 million (US$2.9 million) annually

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