Herders in Kenya’s Baringo County have increased incomes by over 500% by home-processing aloe Vera leaves growing wild in their pastoral pathways.
According to the Center for International Forestry Research, the market potential for the drought-resistant crop that grows naturally in the wild in Kenya is strong but remains underexplored. While brokers buy freshly cut aloe vera leaves for Sh20, the sap within the succulent leaves fetches anywhere from Sh100 – 200 a kilogram.
“To extract the aloe sap I cut off the leaf’s base, tip, and sharp outer edges. This is followed by carefully cutting off its top and bottom layers leaving you with the aloe sap” explained Titus Sepit a header and part aloe farmer in Baringo South.
To solidify the gooey sap it is boiled until it is thick and left to cool for about an hour and starts to turn into aloe gum. This solid aloe sap is packed in airtight bags and is currently being sold for Sh195 to Chinese firm Zonken.
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An acre can hold 4,900 aloe vera plants at a meter-by-meter spacing. Aloe seedlings take two to three years to reach maturity and contain about 50 milliliters of sap. This gives 245 litres of sap per acre. A kilogram of aloe gum requires at least three liters of aloe sap to produce meaning an acre of the crop has an earning potential of Sh21,319 for every round of cutting.
The plant can only be harvested when it is at least two years old once they are mature and have well-established roots. When the plant is at least 2-3 years old you can harvest leaves every two months.
While aloe vera is the common name given to all aloe varieties, aloe secundiflora, is the best-recommended variety for commercial farming because of its ability its ability to produce lots of sap.
However, to grow aloe vera In Kenya requires a permit from the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) as the plant is listed as an endangered species whose trade is regulated under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).
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According to Kenya Aloe Working Group (KAWG), other in-demand variations of aloe vera by Chinese buyers include stabilized aloe juice sold for $1.30 to 2.50/ kg, crude aloe sap sold for $1.50 to 2/ kg, concentrated sap with 22 per cent of aloin– which is the bitter, yellow sap found at the base of the aloe leaf– sold for $6.50 to 8.00/ kg, concentrated aloe sap with 40 per cent aloin $28 to 32/ kg and aloe powder sold for $4 to 6.50/ kg.
Kenya Aloe Working Group: 0723 655506