In 2010, Senegal exported a total value of $1.3 million of groundnut compared to $93,000 in 2009 and $376,000 in 2008, United Kingdom being the main importer (86 percent). Since 2009/10, there has been a launch of revitalization of the groundnut sector for export market penetration that could lead to increase of farmer’s revenue.
When did Senegal start producing groundnuts?
China quickly filled the void left by Senegal and others, increasing production drastically thanks to agricultural reforms and the increased adoption of new varieties. Over the next two decades, Senegal was only able to achieve strong groundnut production in 1974, 1978 and 1982.
Can Senegal regain its footing in the world peanut market?
Senegal is now striving to regain its footing in the world groundnut market, if not in terms of the proportion of the world peanut market it controls (there are more peanuts being traded today than there were in the 1960s and 1970s), then at least in terms of the absolute quantity of groundnuts produced.
What happened to groundnuts in Senegal?
The groundnut basin of central Senegal was effectively the epicenter of the 2002 drought, and production fell by about 70 percent. The next major drought was in 2011—after 2 years of bumper harvests during which Senegal finally managed to once again attain production greater than 1 million tonnes.