Fruit and vegetables in Iringa

2kg of strawberries for $4.35

We are really lucky to have access to top shelf fruit and vegetable in Iringa. We are beneficiaries of Iringa's earned reputation as a productive farming region with two farms that provide an amazing array of produce at good value. They both deliver once a week (Wednesday and Thursday) and have an easy ordering system with seasonal variety. One of the farm even supplies most of the lodges in Ruaha and even in Arusha.

Locally available vegetables are mainly robust varieties that aren't exactly the most tasty, though cheap and reliably abundant. Frequently purchased items are potatoes, red onions, garlic, green pepper, peas, carrots, and cooking tomatoes. Fruits are seasonal though oranges, bananas, and pineapple are generally available year round. Mangoes, passion fruit, guava, tangerines, and watermelon are all dependent on the season.

The two farms have more flavorful varieties of local vegetables while also having an array of vegetables not available in the market. To name a few there is broccoli, baby leaf lettuce, sweet peppers, cherry tomatoes, sweet corn, mushrooms, and my personal favorite, strawberries. We look forward to receiving 2kg of strawberries each week and devouring them!

Whenever we visit Spain we bring many liters of olive oil to ensure we have delicious salads and veggie dishes. We don't cook meat in the house so flavorful veggies are a welcome treat. For those reading in America or Europe, it might not seem like a big deal since you have access to supermarkets fully loaded with fruit and veg. One of the things I do like about here is feeling difference in seasonal production of fruit and veg; your diet is more varied and you can look forward to certain seasons like mango and pumpkin. In addition, probably 90% of the produce we consume is produced in a 100km radius, and the rest is sourced in other parts of Tanzania.

Aside from the fruit and veg, there is also an Italian mission that works with disabled people making a variety of Italian items. This includes pre-made lasagna, meatballs, many varieties of fresh bread, pasta sauce, ravioli, and much more. There are two Italian guys in a fully stocked kitchen with multiple ovens and a brick pizza oven as well. It seems they get creative because each time I visit he explains another new item they have (this time it was chickpea flour pasta). Their prices are great value and their mission is commendable. One interesting note is that one of the guys doesn't speak English well and prefers to speak in Swahili. He's the second Italian I've met in Tanzania that only speaks Italian and Swahili!

Selection of fresh vegetable.