When five tonnes of chilli shipped to Italy in March were rejected and destroyed, horticulture exporter Robert Rukundo was left counting losses that went far beyond the value of the produce.

The shipment followed a similar rejection in Switzerland in 2025, when two tonnes of chilli were also destroyed.

Rukundo, chairperson of the Horticulture Exporters Association of Rwanda, said a tonne of chilli can be worth about $5,000 (approximately Rwf6.3 million), including production and transport costs. Exporters may also have to pay for the destruction of rejected consignments.

"I remember paying about €4,000 (approximately Rwf6.7 million) to have two tonnes of chilli destroyed in Switzerland last year. The costs vary depending on the volume,” he told The New Times.

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Such losses have raised concerns among horticulture exporters over whether farmers are using agricultural inputs that meet the requirements of their intended export markets.

"The problem is that we do not always know which inputs farmers have used,” Rukundo said.

The challenge is compounded by differences in regulations across markets. An agricultural input accepted in one destination may not be permitted in another.

"Products such as Rocket pesticide often contain ingredients that are not accepted in some markets. A pesticide may be allowed, but some of its ingredients may not be,” he said.

Farm codes to trace produce

To address the challenge, the National Agricultural Export Development Board (NAEB) and Rwanda Inspectorate, Competition and Consumer Protection Authority (RICA) are strengthening a farm coding and traceability system that links exported produce to the farms where it was grown.

NAEB Chief Executive Officer Claude Bizimana said the system is designed to take into account differences in requirements between export destinations.

"We have started putting codes on farms. Land where chilli intended for export to the UK is grown should be different from land where chilli for India or China is grown because the inputs used can be different,” Bizimana said.

He said using inputs that are not permitted in a particular destination can result in an entire consignment being rejected and destroyed.

"When produce is tested and found to have been treated with inputs that are not allowed in that particular country, the whole produce can be destroyed,” he said.

The resulting losses can affect the entire supply chain, including farmers who supplied the produce.

"That is why we are looking at the quality of farms and the inputs being used,” Bizimana said.

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Tracking produce back to the farm

Savio Hakirumurame, Acting Director of the Farm Product and Processes Inspection Unit at RICA, said farm coding is intended to establish the origin and production history of horticultural exports.

Instead of treating a consignment simply as Rwandan avocado, chilli or another horticultural product, the system allows authorities and other actors to trace it back to a registered production site.

"This is important because international markets increasingly require evidence of where produce was grown, how it was managed, what pests were monitored, what control measures were applied and how the produce moved through the supply chain,” Hakirumurame said.

The system is being extended to several horticultural commodities, including avocado, French beans, fresh chilli and macadamia.

RICA has also developed export compliance protocols covering fresh chilli and capsicum, cut roses, bitter gourd and baby corn for the European Union and UK markets.

Hakirumurame said the requirements cannot be applied uniformly across all crops because importing countries have different phytosanitary, food safety and quality standards.

Avocado prepares for new markets

The traceability system is also being strengthened as Rwanda seeks to expand its avocado exports.

NAEB has been pursuing new markets through trade exhibitions, while Rwanda has signed a protocol for avocado exports to China.

India is another potential market. A Joint Trade Committee meeting held in India from July 30 to 31, 2026, agreed that Indian experts would assess avocado orchards and registered packhouses as part of preparations to allow Rwandan avocado into the market.

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To support compliance and traceability, NAEB, working with RICA, has identified 121 key avocado orchards, assigned farm codes and registered four packhouses.

Hakirumurame said access to markets such as India will depend on exporters consistently meeting destination-specific requirements.

These include orchard registration and traceability, pest monitoring, farm records, approved packing facilities, proper sorting and grading, and preventing contamination after harvest.

Testing what reaches the market

Pesticide residues remain one of the major compliance concerns for horticultural exports.

Hakirumurame said the issue is not simply whether a pesticide was used, but whether it is authorised for the crop, applied correctly and leaves residues within the maximum levels allowed by the destination market.

"A pesticide may be legally available or used in Rwanda but have a different regulatory status or maximum residue level in an importing country,” he said.

Recent EU notifications concerning Rwandan peppers and chillies have raised concerns over pesticide residues involving substances such as acetamiprid, chlorpyrifos and carbendazim.

Maurice Barikwisi of NAEB said Rwanda uses laboratory equipment to identify chemicals present in horticultural produce and determine their quantities.

The equipment can help establish whether prohibited chemicals are present and whether chemicals applied to produce have had sufficient time to clear before harvesting.

Compliance starts at the farm

Hakirumurame said the broader objective is to move away from dealing with compliance only when produce is ready for export.

Instead, requirements need to be incorporated throughout the production chain, from farm registration and pest management to pesticide use, harvesting, packing, testing and phytosanitary certification.

The system is therefore intended to give exporters and regulators greater visibility of produce from the farm to the export market, while reducing the risk of costly rejections and destruction of consignments.