A Nairobi based exporter Dennis Mutwiri is looking for farmers to supply him with fresh produce from crops such as passion fruits, French beans, snap and snow peas.
According to a 2016 research paper published in www.kenyabrussels.com, there is a demand for frresh healthy food from the European Union driven by consumers’ emphasis on taste and genuineness.
“I need a supply of at least three tonnes of each crop per week for sale to exporters such as the Seyian, Jeffer and Starfruits who then export the produce to the United Kingdom, Netherlands and the United Arab Emirates,” said Mutwiri.
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The cost of purchasing the produce from farmers is dictated by the current market prices. A kilo of snap and snow peas for instance costs Sh150, passion fruits fetch Sh140 per kilo while French beans would earn a farmer Sh80 per kilo.
Farmers with the produce can contact Dennis on +254 724 306 613. He would then visit the farm where the crop is cultivated and check on the quality of the produce before deciding on procuring it.
There is no minimum or maximum quantity that a farmer can deliver, as long as the produce is fresh; Mutwiri takes all of them from all-comers since the demand is high but the supply is low.
“After ascertaining that the value of the products, payment to the farmer is done immediately by cash, but he or she can decide the mode of payment which can be done weekly or monthly,” said Mutwiri.
According to the Export Promotion Council, horticulture in Kenya is one of the fastest growing sub sectors in Kenya’s export sector growing at over seven per cent annually.
The major horticultural exports include cut flowers (60 per cent), vegetables (French green beans, sugar snaps and runner beans) which constitute 35 per cent of the total fresh export exports followed by fresh fruits such as avocadoes, pineapples, passion fruits, mangoes, and pickles, herbs and spices.
In 2016, Kenya’s horticulture earnings stood at Sh101.5bn, contributing approximately 1.44 per cent to the country’s gross domestic product.