With Morocco facing its sixth consecutive year of drought and water tables drying up in key vegetable-growing regions, the need to explore new production areas has become critical. This context gave rise to the Ygrane cooperative in Tata, a mountainous region traditionally limited to date production. Despite this, Mbark Kaffa, a grower and member of Ygrane, sees untapped potential in Tata’s fertile soil, abundant water table, and ample sunlight, ideal for fruit and vegetable cultivation on a larger scale.
Ygrane launched its operations with a 20-hectare commercial trial of early vegetables. Mbark highlights their successful development of pepper seeds in collaboration with a Turkish seed company, resulting in 8 hectares of peppers with a satisfying yield of 60 tonnes per hectare despite a late start. With plans for 10 hectares of beans, 2 hectares of tomatoes, and 1 hectare for various other vegetables, Ygrane aims to expand further based on demand. They’ve already secured a contract for beans with a European supermarket chain, set to commence production in the upcoming season.
Tata, a mountainous region in Morocco, has historically focused on date production, but Mbark Kaffa, a grower and member of the Ygrane cooperative, believes the area has untapped potential. He highlights Tata’s fertile soil, abundant water table, and ample sunlight as ideal for fruit and vegetable cultivation. While agriculture has been limited to subsistence levels, the cooperative aims to transform Tata into a hub for commercial-scale production.
Ygrane began its journey with a 20-hectare trial of early vegetables. Mbark mentions their successful development of pepper seeds in partnership with a Turkish company, resulting in 8 hectares of peppers yielding 60 tonnes per hectare in sizes 40 to 60, despite a late start. With plans for 10 hectares of beans, 2 hectares of tomatoes, and 1 hectare for various other vegetables, Ygrane is prepared to expand based on demand. They’ve already secured a contract for beans with a European supermarket chain, set to begin production in the upcoming season.
Unlike the production model in the Agadir region, the Ygrane cooperative opts for open-field cultivation. This choice provides them with a commercial edge by significantly reducing costs. The specific climate of the Tata province supports open-field cultivation while ensuring high yields, aligning well with the region’s agroecological production methods.
Additionally, Tata growers benefit from a significant advantage: the region’s isolation and newness to commercial-scale production result in an absence of viruses that plague other regions, such as Tobrf in tomatoes or viruses affecting cucumbers. The primary challenge they face is salinity, which remains at a manageable level and can be controlled through irrigation.
Prior to launching production, Mbark undertook significant commercial efforts, participating in major trade fairs such as Fruit Logistica and Fruit Attraction. He credits much of their success on the commercial and market opening front to the support received from the Import Promotion Desk, an initiative of the German government, which enabled them to showcase their produce at major exhibitions. Progress has also been made on the certification front, with expectations to obtain certifications like GLOBALG.A.P, GRASP, BIO, and SMETA in the current season, and SMETA & BIO CREDIT CARBON in the next season. Additionally, the Ygrane cooperative has benefited from the support of the Governor of Tata province, Salh Eddine Amal, and various departments of the Ministry of Agriculture, who believed in and facilitated the project’s realization.
Mbark emphasizes that the convergence of these efforts, combined with the quality of production and excellent farming operations, has yielded positive results. They have already secured contracts with customers in the UK, Germany, and the Netherlands, in addition to serving the local market. This success not only demonstrates the technical feasibility of vegetable production in Tata but also its commercial viability.
In addition to developing agricultural land, the Ygrane Cooperative has established a packing house and cold storage station in Tata. Mbark emphasizes that the construction of the station aligns with agroecology and sustainable development principles, as it operates entirely on solar energy, leading to significant cost savings. The station is fully air-conditioned, which enhances the shelf life of products and maintains an unbroken cold chain. It is also used for storing other products, such as dates.
While Tata lacks some of the infrastructure found in other major Moroccan agricultural regions, Mbark notes that the situation is relatively good. Tata’s geographical location requires an additional 5-hour shipping time compared to Agadir. However, thanks to the packaging station, this does not impact the shelf life of the produce. Tata’s transformation is still in its early stages, and new public and private investments are expected to address infrastructure needs in the near future.
The inauguration of the Ygrane packing station, attended by Minister for Agriculture Mohammed Sadiki and the region’s governor, provided an opportunity to assess short-term infrastructure needs. During the project presentation, the Minister of Agriculture highlighted the region’s great potential, noting that its climate and water availability support the cultivation of several crops. He announced plans by the Ministry, in collaboration with local authorities, to enhance irrigation facilities in the region.
