Ugandan Homemade Drink Threatened by Bill, Market Changes
2024-01-06
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1Lawmakers in Uganda are considering barring people from making a popular alcoholic drink at home.
2The bill being considered would affect people like the Ndyanabo family.
3At least once a week, Girino Ndyanabo's family gathers around a hole in the ground where bananas have been left to ripen.
4The family then peels the bananas and puts them into a wooden container shaped like a boat.
5The father steps in with his bare feet.
6The sweet banana juice he presses out is then filtered.
7To this he adds sorghum.
8The juice is then left to ferment for up to a day.
9This process changes the juice into an alcoholic drink.
10The result is the home-brewed drink Ugandans call tonto, or tontomera.
11This word describes a drinker's poor movements.
12Tonto is famous in Uganda.
13Everyone drinks it - from officials to laborers.
14Singers sing about it. Politicians seeking office drink it with voters.
15And traditional ceremonies end at sunset with tonto parties.
16However, there are threats to the way tonto is currently produced.
17More people are now drinking low-cost bottled beer.
18Health officials want rules to limit the risks from contaminated home brews.
19And officials want to get tax income from the production and sale of the drink.
20The bill in the national assembly seeks to set rules for the production and sale of alcohol.
21It would make the activities of home brewers of tonto a crime.
22It would also make the production of other traditional home brews in the East African country a crime.
23But farmers have a more urgent concern: Not enough new banana juice cultivars are being planted to produce the drink.
24Instead, more farmers are planting a different sort of banana.
25This kind is boiled and eaten as a popular dish called matooke.
26Girino Ndyanabo farms in the western district of Mbarara.
27His first experience with tonto was as a little boy in the 1970s.
28He said he has only a few plants left of the cultivars he uses to make tonto.
29He gets his bananas from farmers near him until he can fill the small pit on his farm.
30The natural underground heat ripens the bananas within days as he prepares for the weekly pressing.
31The event is important in the family's daily life because they sell tonto.
32Ndyanabo said his weekly brew has regular buyers.
33But in recent years, he has seen both demand and supply slow.
34This is partly because the sale price of tonto has been largely unchanged for many years.
35However, the process of brewing it has become more difficult.
36Tonto brewers must travel farther for their bananas.
37Also, the price of sorghum has gone up.
38"You take a lot of time doing this work. It's not as easy as someone who cuts matooke, puts it on a bicycle and sells it for cash immediately," Ndyanabo said of the green bananas that are eaten raw by most Ugandans.
39The bananas used for alcohol come from very far, he added.
40To help this situation, he has been trying to plant more of the banana juice cultivars.
41They grow faster. And his son, Mathias Kamukama, helps.
42The family makes five or six 20-liter jerricans for each brewing.
43A jerrican's worth sells for about $8.
44A half-liter of tonto sells for about 27 cents, compared to 67 cents for the cheapest bottled beer.
45Benson Muhereza is an electrician who regularly visits a small drinking place in a poor neighborhood of Mbarara.
46"It (is) like a favorite drink when you have your lunch. It (is) like a juice. When you don't want to take beer, you come and have your tonto," Muhereza said.
47He said it does not make him feel bad or cause his head to hurt.
48Christine Kyomuhangi sells tonto.
49She said she receives two jerricans of the brew every day.
50She knows her business is at risk because of the bill.
51But she smiled, saying buyers come from all over the city.
52"Tonto will never get finished," she added, meaning tonto will survive all of these challenges.
53I'm Anna Matteo.
1Lawmakers in Uganda are considering barring people from making a popular alcoholic drink at home. 2The bill being considered would affect people like the Ndyanabo family. 3At least once a week, Girino Ndyanabo's family gathers around a hole in the ground where bananas have been left to ripen. The family then peels the bananas and puts them into a wooden container shaped like a boat. The father steps in with his bare feet. The sweet banana juice he presses out is then filtered. To this he adds sorghum. The juice is then left to ferment for up to a day. This process changes the juice into an alcoholic drink. 4The result is the home-brewed drink Ugandans call tonto, or tontomera. This word describes a drinker's poor movements. 5Tonto is famous in Uganda. Everyone drinks it - from officials to laborers. Singers sing about it. Politicians seeking office drink it with voters. And traditional ceremonies end at sunset with tonto parties. 6However, there are threats to the way tonto is currently produced. More people are now drinking low-cost bottled beer. Health officials want rules to limit the risks from contaminated home brews. And officials want to get tax income from the production and sale of the drink. 7The bill in the national assembly seeks to set rules for the production and sale of alcohol. It would make the activities of home brewers of tonto a crime. It would also make the production of other traditional home brews in the East African country a crime. 8But farmers have a more urgent concern: Not enough new banana juice cultivars are being planted to produce the drink. 9Instead, more farmers are planting a different sort of banana. This kind is boiled and eaten as a popular dish called matooke. 10Girino Ndyanabo farms in the western district of Mbarara. His first experience with tonto was as a little boy in the 1970s. He said he has only a few plants left of the cultivars he uses to make tonto. 11He gets his bananas from farmers near him until he can fill the small pit on his farm. The natural underground heat ripens the bananas within days as he prepares for the weekly pressing. The event is important in the family's daily life because they sell tonto. 12Ndyanabo said his weekly brew has regular buyers. But in recent years, he has seen both demand and supply slow. This is partly because the sale price of tonto has been largely unchanged for many years. 13However, the process of brewing it has become more difficult. Tonto brewers must travel farther for their bananas. Also, the price of sorghum has gone up. 14"You take a lot of time doing this work. It's not as easy as someone who cuts matooke, puts it on a bicycle and sells it for cash immediately," Ndyanabo said of the green bananas that are eaten raw by most Ugandans. The bananas used for alcohol come from very far, he added. 15To help this situation, he has been trying to plant more of the banana juice cultivars. They grow faster. And his son, Mathias Kamukama, helps. 16The family makes five or six 20-liter jerricans for each brewing. A jerrican's worth sells for about $8. A half-liter of tonto sells for about 27 cents, compared to 67 cents for the cheapest bottled beer. 17Benson Muhereza is an electrician who regularly visits a small drinking place in a poor neighborhood of Mbarara. 18"It (is) like a favorite drink when you have your lunch. It (is) like a juice. When you don't want to take beer, you come and have your tonto," Muhereza said. 19He said it does not make him feel bad or cause his head to hurt. 20Christine Kyomuhangi sells tonto. She said she receives two jerricans of the brew every day. She knows her business is at risk because of the bill. But she smiled, saying buyers come from all over the city. 21"Tonto will never get finished," she added, meaning tonto will survive all of these challenges. 22I'm Anna Matteo. 23Rodney Muhumuza reported this story for the Associated Press. Anna Matteo adapted this story for VOA Learning English. 24___________________________________________ 25Words in This Story 26ripen -v. when a fruit becomes ready to eat 27filter -v. to take solid things out of a liquid using a filter 28peel -v. to remove the skin from a fruit or vegetable 29ferment -v. to process certain foods such as fruit or grains so that yeast breaks down the starch in the plant to make alcohol; to change the quality of a food by adding bacteria 30brew -v. to add microorganisms to food to change its nature and preserve it for a future time 31contaminated -adj. containing something that should not be there 32cultivar - n a sort of plant that is one of several versions of closely related plants which gardeners or farmers grow 33jerrican -n. a kind of container that has flat sides and is usually used to carry liquids 34We want to hear from you. Do you have similar expressions in your language? Our comment policy is here.