Mkulima young an online platform enables farmers to sell or buy all types of farm produce such as eggs, onions, tomatoes, pawpaw, apples, oranges, beetroots, kiwi, watermelons and vegetables among other farm products.
The platform www.mkulimayoung.com was founded in 2013 by Joseph Macharia, an agricultural expert who wanted to inspire the youth to engage in farming as an enterprise.
“With the current digital generation, it is important to rebrand farming using online platform that the youth can access and interact with easily,” said Macharia.
Mkulima young has created an online marketplace with more than 10,000 users making sales daily.
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To join the platform, you have to access the online website www.mkulimayoung.com then click the register button at the top right corner of the website.
During the registration process, one submits their name, email address, mobile number and password of their choice before login in.
Once you log in you can then upload a photo of your produce, the price and location to prospective buyers.
On the website you can also search for any item you need by clicking the search button and typing the item.
The website enables users to interact with one another and exchange ideas on upcoming technologies and markets.
In 2017, Kenyan farmers lost 1.9m tonnes of food as they struggled to find markets according to the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics.
The website therefore will go a long way in curbing wastage.
Of the total food wasted, maize, Kenya’s staple food was the most affected with the country losing Sh29.6bn worth of the crop yet it imported another bunch worth Sh42bn.
Green bananas were the second most affected crop as farmers lost Sh24bn worth of the produce.
Other produce that went to waste due to poor storage and handling, transport, and fungi attack, according to data contained in the 2018 Economic Survey released in April, includes Irish potatoes (Sh19.7bn), milk (Sh12.4bn), beans (Sh11.5bn), ripe yellow bananas (Sh5.6bn),