Most Ethiopians in Diaspora might soon be getting the chance to enjoy the taste of home made wot everyday. But that is not all, the wot will be cooked, packed and exported directly from Ethiopia. According to the Ethiopian reporter Hailu Tessema, owner and general manager of Mama Fresh Injera Plc has finalized the necessary preparations to export frozen chicken curry and Ethiopian traditional sauces to North America and Europe. At Hailu was quoted as saying that his company has got the clearance from the United States Food and Drug Authority (FDA) to enter into the US market. This could happen as early as in two months time.

Initially the export is limited to some traditional sauces with future expansion to include frozen Ethiopian traditional fasting foods. The company has all the latest technology to properly freeze and pack these kinds of foods. He has an upbeat feeling about the prospect and profitability of his products, mainly given the large number of Ethiopian Diaspora in the US and Europe.  Aside from the export, the company is now busy with local orders on the occasion of weddings and other social gatherings where it provides both the injera and various types of traditional stews. The organization, which made it from a micro level business to a tens of millions of birr industrial-level export venture, has in the meantime transferred the injera business to the next level.

“I have been in Europe for two weeks to look for an ideal solution to transfer the injera business to the next level,” Hailu says. “Now I have managed to get European-made injera baking machines that bakes one piece of injera in one minute. This will in a few months nearly doubles the volume of injera we export.” With over 200 employees, and being the leading injera exporter in Ethiopia, Mana Fresh Injera currently exports over 10,000 pieces of injera and 250 kg of kocho. The company plans to incease its injera export  from 15,000 to 20,000 pieces a week after six months. With Easter holiday there, the company has been busy this week to meet the export order for the 14,000 pieces of injera, and 1,000 kg kocho. Aside from the export of injera and kocho, Mama exports different grocer products and traditional spices to market overseas.

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