A group of six enterprising women have turned a heap of garbage in Nakuru into a lush of vegetables and fruits that is now feeding over 7,000 vulnerable people while providing much-needed income. The women, including farm supervisor, Eunice Ojale have been working on the piece of a rehabilitated dumpsite for half a decade and …
Entrepreneuring women farmers churn trash to cash Read More »
A farmer in the arid Matungulu, Machakos County is shielding himself from dry spells by embracing climate-resilient farming like beekeeping and has become a model to others as thousands of customers flock to his farm for quality honey. Gabriel Mbatha Nzomo locally known as Alex is a dedicated dry-land farmer. From his five-acre piece of land …
Machakos farmer embraces bees for climate change resilience Read More »
By George Munene The Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) and Jaick Agricultural Produce, an exporter of organic strawberries have opened a farmer training center at the university’s Juja campus. The project will train farmers on growing strawberries through conventional open field methods, in greenhouses and vertical gardens as well as via soilless …
JKUAT & strawberry exporter offering farmer training and market Read More »
By George Munene Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa have not yet fully exploited the potential of root and tuber crops in their contribution to people’s diets, livelihoods, and economies. The production of main root crops such as cassava, sweet potato, coco yam, and yams remains below potential– a challenge to policymakers, researchers, and other value chain …
African farmers not capitalising on growing root & tuber crops demand Read More »
By George Munene According to the Fresh Produce consortium of Kenya (FPCK), exporters of fresh agricultural produce from Kenya have lost Sh 500 million and counting due to the ongoing strike by Kenya Airways (KQ) pilots. Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Franklin Mithika Linturi has urged the national carrier and its pilots to work swiftly to resolve …
Kenya’s fresh agriculture exporters lose Sh500M as KQ pilots strike Read More »
Small-scale farmers must first identify the market for goods they intend to produce to avoid surplus and competition that lead to low prices. Charles Odida, a renowned Western Kenya large-scale sugarcane and maize farmer said producing for imaginary consumers chocks the market, which cannot seep the surplus. Farmers sell produce at low prices when there is …
Farmers advised to identify markets before production to avoid poor prices Read More »
Tired of unscrupulous middlemen who buy their potato at a low price and selling at a higher cost made potato farmers in Shamata area in Nyandarua County start a cooperative through which they earn supply tenders, share transport costs and other labour costs thus helping them in economy of scale. Nyandarwa Farmers’ Cooperative has earned …
Nyandarua potato farmers co-op secures tenders with group farming Read More »
Makueni-based agro-processing company Burton and Bamber Ltd which works with farmers from Makueni and Kitui counties to secure a market for their orange-fleshed sweet potatoes has set up the country’s first commercial microwave processing plant. Continous-flow microwave heating is an emerging technology in food processing and offers a fast and efficient way to sterilise sweet …
By George Munene According to players in the onion agri sub-sector, it is more profitable for small-scale farmers to harvest and sell their onions even if the market prices are unfavorable rather than store them for better prices in the future. Onions are perhaps the only widely consumed horticultural product that is relatively easy to …
Why it is more profitable to sell onions immediately after harvest than store Read More »
By George Munene According to the Kenya Agricultural and Research Organisation (KALRO) with proper modalities, farmers can fetch up to Sh1.8 million annually rearing silkworms on one acre. Dubbed ‘Queen of Textiles’ as it has often been viewed as a status symbol of luxury and royalty, the demand for silk remains high. One kilogram of …
Silkworm farming earns farmers up to Sh1.8M an acre Read More »
