Scientists at the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (Icipe) have unveiled two superior, disease resistant napier grass varieties at a time when farmers especially in Western Kenya are being buffeted by low yields due to poor varieties. The varieties which have come up as a result of aggressive research can withstand the notorious […]
Scientists unveil disease resistant napier to fight smut disease Read More »
Kenya is experiencing a boom in poultry rearing, buoyed predominantly by growing demand for poultry and its product with an upbeat local and international market. Most of the poultry farmers are small scale, but one man in Nyeri has dedicated more than acre to chicken farming in a multi million shilling investment, the largest in
How a dream hatched largest chicken empire in East and Central Africa Read More »
The liberalization of informal milk markets in the country has now seen producers, vendors and consumers reaping large from an improved value chain as the dairy sector records the highest turnover ever, a move that has now seen even banks scramble to finance the sector. Jane Wanjiku buys a litre of milk from farmers at
Milk hawking lifts farmers’ prospects and economy Read More »
Kilifi farmers are slowly courting organic fertilizer in a move meant to shift them from conventional fertilizers that have been responsible for increasing soil acidity that is taking its toll on yields. This comes as reports indicate that 80 percent of Kenya’s arable land is highly acidic a fact demonstrated by dwindling yields in recent
Farmers move to organic fertilizer as soil acidity takes toll on yields Read More »
Farmers in Rift Valley are domesticating nettles, a high valued vegetable that was traditionally farmed by native communities along the Mau forest as demand soars dictated by a health conscious middle class. A group of women in the area are now respected suppliers of the nettles in large hotels in Rift Valley province especially those
Dried nettles draw fanatical uptake among health conscious middle class Read More »
As warnings get issued that Kenya’s agricultural water use is surpassing sustainable levels and adversely affecting food security, biodiversity researchers say that agrobiodiversity practices like growing vegetables and fruits should be actively embraced to combat the impending disaster. “In order to feed the nation, the country must explore agrobiodiversity, specifically the growing of vegetables and
Growing vegetables and fruits tames water wastage, researchers Read More »
Kenyan cereal farmers long buffeted by post harvest losses and poor farm gate prices have found relief in a new scheme that allows them to store produce until a market shortage while using it as collateral to access financing. Traditionally most of the cereals harvested were susceptible to post harvest losses especially attack by weevils.
Cereal farmers grow incomes with storage wares Read More »
Kenyan farmers are using a new solution that reduces water and pesticides wastage by allowing faster absorption by the roots, translating into tripling of yields and reduction in farm expenses. The solution dubbed ‘Super Grow’ is aimed at reducing water and pesticide wastage at a time when climate change impacts threatens farmers with unpredictable rain
‘Super Grow’ stems water wastage, tripling yields Read More »
As global demand for coffee reaches unprecedented highs, Kenyan farmers are replanting what they uprooted decades ago due to its poor returns and this time even the government is keen to reap from the international demand. In the 1980s Africa produced about 30 percent of the world’s coffee, but today, going by current statistics, it
Farmers return to coffee as global demand hit new highs Read More »
The scramble for agricultural land by real estate coupled with discovery of minerals are taking a toll on Kenya’s arable land even as population soars, but a group of vanguard farmers are now rehabilitating dry and rocky patches of land for arable farming and earning handsomely from it. Kenya’s arid and semi arid land covers
Farmers reap fortunes turning rock to arable land Read More »