US(NJ): First season for specialty African eggplants

Global Bloom, a global produce sourcing company that is located in the Bronx, NY, was started in 2014. The company is being managed by Claire Sakho, who worked in the Netherlands for a number of years. “During my time in Europe, and other travels I have seen some really nice produce items and I am making an effort in introducing them to the US market,” says Claire Sakho with Global Bloom. 

One of those specialty items is the African eggplant. “This variety is grown among other places in Guinea, Senegal, Mali and Burkina Faso, but the USDA doesn’t allow eggplants from these West African countries to be imported into the US. They only allow eggplants from Ghana, but that is a different variety from the one I chose,” added Sakho. “I chose this particular variety as I am familiar with it. In the US, the visual appeal of fresh produce is very important and to me, this variety has what it takes to catch people’s attention.”

Sakho was able to get the seeds of the African eggplant and started partnering with a grower in New Jersey. “The grower gets a lot of credits for working with me on this idea. He has done a fantastic job, in taking my suggestions for properly growing and harvesting the product. My end of the bargain was to find a market for this specialty item. In fact, demand from the West African population in New York City is huge, but I am trying to make the American consumer familiar with it as well,” added Sakho.

Harvest of the African eggplant started in July and continues through September, maybe October. As soon as harvest started, every day Sakho visited ethnic stores and African markets in NYC to make them aware of the availability of her eggplants. Store owners as well as customers were so excited to see this variety being available that they started taking them from the box as she was presenting them. 

“In addition to visiting ethnic stores, I’ve reached out to various media outlets, and chefs to generate interest for this special variety,” mentioned Sakho. Last Wednesday, an article was published in the food section of the New York Times. “Hopefully, this is the start of African eggplants becoming a staple item of the North American diet,” Sakho finished.

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Claire Sakho