Grain warehousing: A way to go in ensuring proper storage of grains and Kenya's food security

Grain warehousing                 by Mwangi Mumero

Across the East African region, many farmers suffer from post-harvest losses mainly due to poor grain handling, low storage capacity and poor skills. From wheat, rice, sorghum, maize and millets – foods that supply most of the carbohydrates in the region- losses have been immense, threatening food security.

During the 1997/98 El Nino rains, Nduku Nzioka, a farmer from Kitui, Eastern Kenya could not handle the huge harvest that came from her normally dry piece of land.

Kitui is a semi-arid region where residents have to periodically rely on food aid from the government and donor organizations especially during extended drought.

Yet, the El Nino phenomenon brought huge harvests and fortunes as heavy rains pounded their region.

“Our pigeon pea, beans and maize harvest was unprecedented. Many local persons had never witnessed such a boom in yields for over a generation. We made huge profits”, remember Nduku, a mother of four.

But even with these hefty yields, local farmers were unprepared. Their grain storage capacity was low and many did not even have granaries to store much grain.

“We lost a large part of the grain through decomposition as grain left uncovered outside got rain on. Brokers and buyers from Nairobi also took advantage of our precarious situation and bought the grains at throwaway prices. It was distressing”, added Nduku.

During this prolonged rainfall period, local media houses aired reports of exploitation of local farmers by brokers and buyers mainly from Nairobi, Nakuru and Mombasa who were buying to hoard awaiting a period of scarcity to re-sell to the same farmers at a higher price. Across the country, grain loses are huge especially after harvesting.

An agriculture think tank, Egerton University based Tegemeo Institute, estimates that post harvest losses in Kenya is around 30 per cent of all stored produce.

However, the advent of Larger Grain Borer and Aflatoxin, the loss can be over 100 per cent depending on the severity of the outbreak.

As recently as the October/November 2009, the harvesting period in Eastern, Central and Coast regions experienced wet weather.

This resulted in widespread outbreak of Aflatoxin contamination in these regions making grains unsuitable for human consumption and hence not marketable.

   

With this in mind, organization have come up with ways of working with farmers on grain storage capacity and value addition to get maximum benefits from their yields.

“Farmers deposit their grain at our certified warehouse and then the farmer can decide to sell immediately or store the grain longer waiting for better prices”, observed Samuel Munyasia, a food officer with the East Africa Grain Council (EAGC).

EAGC has offices in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania and is supported by development organizations such as Sida, USAID, COMPLETE and Financial Sector Deepening (FSD) Kenya.

The EAGC has introduced a warehouse receipt system (WRS) where a farmer –now known as a depositor- can store grains with the organization and then use the receipt as security to obtain loans from financial organizations.

“While waiting for a better price, the depositor can use the receipt to access financing from banks which can loan up to 60 to 80 per cent of the prevailing market value of the grain. The funding allows the farmer to carry out normal business such a land preparation, purchase of farm inputs for the next season”, said Mr. Munyasia who is based in Mutomo, near Kitui.

With little harvest obtained in this dry part of the country, a big number of farmers in Kitui, Machakos and Makueni have not constructed modern grain storage facilities that can hold dry cereals over long periods.

“The warehouse system allows us to reduce post-harvest wastage, exploitation by brokers and buyers as well as cushioning the farmer from low grain prices”, said David Kasyoki, another farmer in the region.

According to Mr. Munyasia, this warehouse receipt system allows for aggregation of larger and tradable volumes from small scale farmers while using professional managers to store grain and ensure good conditions that reduces post-harvest loses.

“ There is also increased financing of the agricultural sector to bring about investment in infrastructure such as warehouses, trucks and grin processing thereby increasing efficiency in grain value chain”, he said.

Accordingly, this system is credited with helping farmers access a larger and more formal market even to distant places because buyers have knowledge of quantity and quality of tradable grains.

Through the system, it has become possible to transfer grain from one owner to another without the added cost of transporting the commodity from one store to the next along with handling on and off the trucks, bagging and re-bagging, spillages and pilferage.

The Government of Kenya in its 2010/11 budget statement committed itself to supporting the development of WRS and other related exchange infrastructure, building on a pilot initiated by the Eastern Africa Grain Council (EAGC) (ENDS)

Goat plague- a menace of pastrolist farmers in Kenya

Goat plague outbreak               by Mwangi Mumero

Veterinary officials in Kenya have launched a massive vaccination exercise targeting over 50,000 livestock in Marakwet County after an outbreak of goat plague that has already killed 2,000 animals.

The Kabete Veterinary Laboratories in Nairobi have confirmed that the deaths in Kerio Valley in northern Rift valley were attributed to Peste Des Petits Ruminants (PPR) –also known as goat plague.

Results of the lab samples ruled out Rift Valley Fever and East Coast Fever. The disease mainly affects small ruminants- goats and sheep and can cause a large number of deaths over as short period.

“This disease has in recent years spread through Turkana, Kerio Valley, Isiolo and Garrissa but was contained”, said Mr. Bernard Moenga, a Ministry of Livestock official in charge of veterinary disease control.

Livestock farmers in the region are bracing themselves for huge losses as animals die as the viral disease spreads.

“The animals start coughing and show excessive diarrhoea before they die. A loss in our goats and sheep will affect our livelihoods as it is the mainstay of the local economy”, observed Kibyego Biwott, a local farmer.

The Marakwet Veterinary Officer Dr Joseph Kiyeng has said that his department has dispatched PPR vaccines and is sensitizing farmers as vaccinations of their animals commences.

Beyond Marakwet County, the disease outbreak has been reported in Central Pokot, Baringo East, and Baringo North all in Kerio Valley.

The disease- also known as goat plague killed over 2 million small ruminants in Kenya from 2006 to 2009, according to the Ministry of Livestock development.

First reported in the country in 2006 at Oropoi and Lokichoggio divisions of Turkana district- close to the Sudan border- the disease has spread to 16 other districts across the country.

PPR is a severe, fast spreading disease of mainly small ruminants. Signs includes onset of depressions, fever, discharges from the eyes and nose, sores in the mouth with difficult breathing and coughing. There is also the production of smelly diarrhea and finally death.

The disease has also been known to attack wild relatives of goat and sheep like gazelles, gemsbok and Nubian ibex with many researchers attributing these as the sources of the periodic viral outbreaks.

Interaction of small ruminants with their wild relatives in the open fields has been suspected as the source of the virus. It is closely related to rinderpest of cattle.

The virus is spread through discharges from eyes, nose, mouth as well as loose faeces. The fine droplets in cough and sneeze spread quickly pass the virus especially when animals are in close contact.

Contact of animals in the markets, especially when coming from different regions, exacerbated the problem. Equally, a recent history of animal movements and gathering of small ruminants of different ages with associated changes in housing and feeding, boost the spread of the virus.

Other predisposing factors include the introduction of recently purchased animals into the village flock and animals sent to the market and returned unsold. Development of fattening units where animals are concentrated has promoted the spread of the scourge.

Changes in weather such as the onset of the rainy season as the harmattan season in West Africa have also been culprits to the outbreak of the virus.

The disease has infection rates of 50 to 100 per cent with 60 to 80 per cent of the infected dying. Some households have lost half their flocks from the disease. In endemic regions, most of the sick and dying animals are over four months and up to 2 years of age.

With the death, comes economic hardship, as most of the activities in arid and semi-arid areas (asals) are centre around livestock. The animals are the source of meat, milk, blood and income.

 “In pastoralist communities, sheep and goats belong to the poor and women. They sell them to buy cattle, an upward economic mobility. With their deaths, poverty becomes pervasive”, said Dr Maina Kibata, a Kenyan veterinary officer who has worked in Southern Sudan and has wide experience in PPR.

Dr Kibata added that barriers to the international markets are a major blow to livelihoods in these regions.

 There are approximately 10 million goats in the Kenya’s drylands. They are hardy and able to survive on poor pastures and go for long periods without water. They are also resistant to many internal parasites.

Further, over 90 per cent of these goats are indigenous and contribute 30 per cent of the total red meat consumed nationally.

Traditionally, goats are also used as sacrifices to the deities during times of calamities or diseases. They are also slaughtered to celebrate bumper harvests or peace between communities.

Small ruminants are always exported as live animals to the Arab world, a market closed due to the outbreak of goat plague.

Local markets effects include loss of business for various actors who rely on small ruminants production such input dealers, livestock traders, butchers, hides and skin dealers, and consumers.

“With the outbreak of this disease in our region, we expect quarantine to be impose with the closure of the local livestock markets. We will be unable to sell our livestock and this will affect our ability of buy food, pay school fees for our kids as well as meet the other social-economic demands”, lamented Mr. Biwott, the Marakwet livestock farmer, calling on the government to move quickly and contain this disease to avert the economic fallout. (Ends)

 

Use of 'kickstart' pumps in Kenya boost small scale irrigation

Simple irrigation technologies    by Mwangi Mumero
Smallholder farmers across the country face serious problems during the dry season.
Relying heavily on rain-fed agriculture, these farmers must confine their farming to months when rain is available.
This pattern compromises food security - both for their families and their livestock.
“Availability of food especially vegetables is a challenge during the dry months of December to March ands around September. Prices for these foods skyrocket as little is being produced in our farms during these periods”, observed Onesmus Kariuki, a farmer from Githagara Village in Murang’a County during a recently held agribusiness exhibition at Ihura Stadium in Murang’a.
Like Kariuki, many farmers across the country  suffer from this scarcity- abundance farming cycle.
“Even forages for livestock become scarce during this period affecting milk production and earning power of the rural populace”, noted Mr. Kariuki, a retired veterinary officer and also a dairy farmer.
But now uptake of simple irrigation technologies by rural farmers in the country is helping avert the shortage of vegetables, fruits and livestock fodder for animals.
“Cheaper hand and leg operated pumps are the way to go for farmers with less than 5 acres. They require little technical skills and are low in maintenance costs”, said Mr. Japheth Waititu, Kickstart Regional Representative for Murang’a County as he explained to farmers the working of these irrigation technologies.
Kickstart is a non-profit organization that provides low-cost technologies to local entrepreneurs to establish profitable enterprises.
The manually operated pumps known as Moneymaker, have in the last couple of years transformed smallholder farming, and especially for horticulture crops such as cabbages, tomatoes and kales.
Smallholder irrigation technologies like Kickstart’s help to break the long dry spells and in turn reduce the food insecurity experienced in many parts of the African continent.
According to Mr. Waititu, there are two types of Money Maker pumps. The hand-operated, working more like a bicycle pump, retails at Ksh 6,300 ($ 74) and comes with a 10 metre hose pipe to connect to a sprinkler and another 7 metre pipe for taking water from the source such as well, dam or river.
The bigger pump-costing Ksh 11,990 ($ 140) is operated by legs and comes with the same sizes of hose pipes.  
Ridden like a bicycle, the pumps can draw water from wells 10-15 metres in depth. The pumps can push water to 200 metres of a flat ground and be able to operate 5 sprinklers.
“The smaller pump can irrigate 1.25 acres with the bigger one capable of supplying water within 2 acres. We train farmers on usage and maintenance of the simple pumps. Depending on usage, there is minimal maintenance cost and farmers are able to recoup their investment within the first 6 months”, added Mr. Waititu.
With these pumps, smallholder farmers can irrigate and sell high value crops throughout the year. Water for domestic use and for livestock can also be pumped and later treated in the homestead.
 One farmer who has benefitted immensely from these hand operated pumps in the last decade is retired teacher Wachira Njoori, a fruit farmer in Wangwaci Village of Sipili location in dry Laikipia County.
In the mid-90s, Njoori and other farmers in Sipili location in Laikipia district invested in a manually operated water pump which he has used to irrigate his three-acre orchard.
Drawing water from a neighbouring wetland using the pump, Wachira has grown a variety of fruits ranging from oranges, tangerines, paw paws, mangoes, fruit tomatoes, avocadoes, grape fruits and bananas.
 Having established the orchard over a decade ago, Wachira now sells 100 kg of fruit weekly. At a rate of Ksh 20 ($ 0.23) per kilogram, he has been making over Ksh 100,000 ($1,180) annually from fruits alone.
 “If anyone tells me to go back to class, I will protest as I am my own boss today and can support my retirement comfortably from fruit sales”, say the Wachira, a father of five fully grown and independent children.
 But the  pump has been able to support other enterprises on the farm. A progressive farmer, he has raised 100 layers and 150 broilers on the farm.
 With water being a scarce commodity in this area, the pump has been vital in drawing water for the chicken enterprise.
 “The pump has been a major boost for the chicken enterprise. Without it, water would have been difficult of obtain making the chicken enterprise difficult”, he noted.
 With 90 eggs laid on daily basis, he has been able to get a monthly income of Ksh18.900 ($222), at a price of Ksh 7 per egg.
 Jointly with other farmers, he has been supplying a Nyahururu based tourist hotel with broilers netting him an income of over Ksh 30,000 ($350).
But other farmers like Wachira have used the pumps to grow profitable fruits and support for the poultry enterprises.
Farmers can buy the pumps from local dealers with the prices ranging from Ksh 5000- 12,000 ($ 59-141) a piece.
“Maintenance cost of the pumps is minimal other than regular oiling and sometimes replacement of piston rubber cups”, notes Wachira.
Occasionally, hired labour is necessary for farmers whose land size is larger.
    So far Kickstart has operations in Tanzania, Kenya, Zambia,       Mozambique, Uganda and Mali.
With the uptake of these technologies across the East African region, Kickstart reports that 800 farmers take up the pumps every month. (ends)

Naivasha Flower Fair: A link fpr service providers and growers

Horticultural show        by Mwangi Mumero

With exports currently valued at $ 640 million, the Kenya horticultural sub-sector has continued to attract investors and service providers in the last couple of years.

The sub-sector now employs about 4.4 million people in the

country directly in production, processing and marketing ,while another 3.5 million benefit indirectly from  horticulture.

It is a big contributor to the nation’s GDP, competing with tourism and tea for the top slot as the biggest earners in the economy.

With its huge potential, horticulture has become an attraction in many trade and business fairs in the East African region.

Recently, the Naivasha Horticulture Fair attracted more 250 exhibitors -50 of whom were multinationals in the flower, vegetable and fruit industries. Exhibitors included flower breeders, marketing firms, transporters and logistics as well as service providers.

The Naivasha region in the Rift Valley- 80 km from Nairobi- is considered the Silicon Valley of the global flower industry.

Most of the flowers exported to the European Union originate from this region known for its saline lake- which provides most of the irrigation water used by the flower farms.

“The horticulture industry continues to contribute to the Kenya economy through generation of income, creation of employment opportunities for rural people and foreign exchange earnings in addition to providing raw materials to the agro processing industry”, observed Joram Kiarie, Kenya Commercial Bank Director of Mortgage Business and one of the guests at the two- day event.

 Currently on its 10^th year, the Naivasha Fair has in the last three years been sponsored by the Kenya Commercial Bank- one of the oldest and biggest financial institutions in the region.

“As a leading financier of agribusiness in the region, the KCB Group has invested Ksh 12 million ($ 140,000) in the fair over the period”, noted Mr. Kiarie during the opening ceremony which was also graced by Kenya’s Agriculture minister Dr Sally Kosgei.

According to Dr Kosgei, the Naivasha Horticultural Fair is a ‘one-stop shop’ that brings together all industry stakeholders to showcase their products and services and take stock on the way forward.

“As the government, we have received complains from producers on the slow pace of VAT refund and we are working closely with the ministry of finance to streamline the payments. We have also removed tax on farm inputs such as fertilizers and pesticides to increase access to farmers and also reduce production costs”, sad Dr Kosgei, highlighting on the incentives the government has offered farmers to boost production.

The government, Dr Kosgei offered, has worked closely with large scale and small scale horticulture producers to make their operations smooth by removing hurdles.

“The horticulture industry is in private hands and the only thing the government can do is to create an enabling business environment for the private sector to achieve their targets”.

Exhibitors interviewed by African Farming felt that the Fair provided a good opportunity to interact with farmers, breeders and service providers. It is also a forum where new business contacts are made for further consultation.

“The fair has provided us with a platform to show case our irrigation kits and other farm technologies from the smallholder to large scale horticulture farmers. We have been able to interact closely with the consumers of our products and services”, said Yariv Kedar, the deputy managing director of Amiran Kenya Ltd.

In the last decade, Amiran, an Israeli firm, has pioneered in the introduction of affordable irrigation technologies that have seen smallholder farmers initiate green house project for the production of vegetables such as onions, cabbages, tomatoes and capsicum.

The company has rolled out an irrigation kit suitable for schools colleges, and even for small scale farmers.

“A minimum land requirement is an eighth –acre. At affordable prices, the schools can access a greenhouse, collapsible tank, drip lines, agro-chemicals, fertilizers and a spray pump. We also offer protective gear and formal training for at least 3 persons in a school on irrigation techniques”, he observed.

Depending on the size of greenhouse, prices vary. A 15metre by 8 metre greenhouse retails at Ksh 177,000 ($ 1,770) while a bigger one of 24 by 8 metres will go for Ksh 240,000 ($ 2,400).

According to Mr. Kedar, the company offers training and extension services to buyers of their products for over two years.

Information technology was also well represented the fair as companies showcased solutions for horticultural farmers.

“With this mapping software, a farmer will be able to identify parts of land according to the yields obtained from that section. This will enable the farmer to evaluate how their piece of land yielded – where most grain was harvested and where the least produce was obtained”, remarked Mr. Khurram Mohamed, the Precision Sales Engineer with Crop Nutrition Laboratories.

He was showing farmers a new software- known as FARMWORKS- that can map a piece of land on their yield production capability.

Mounted on a combine harvester, the device collects data using GSM and then transmits it to a nearby laptop for interpretation to a map, which is a shade of colours.

“With this information the farmer may decide to add more manure or fertilizer on the poor yielding areas, may change farm practices such as ploughing or may decide to introduce new crops to boost soil fertility”, said Mr. Mohammed.

Another company Two Way Communications was showcasing new communication gargets.

“Communication within the flower farms- mainly on operations and security are a must for any grower. Over 99 per cent of the flower farms are users of our products”, noted Stephen Ndung’u, the technical sales officer with the firm as he explained to farmers on their latest products.

Farmers attending the fair also had the opportunity of learning new farming technologies and skills.

“We always come to this show to seek new ideas. As a small-scale farmers, it is important we keep up with the trend in the horticultural industry so that we are abreast with emerging issues in the sub-sector”, said David Kibyego, a youthful smallholder farmer from Kericho County, about 150 km from Naivasha.

Like many farmers in his region, Mr. Kibyego grows cabbages, kales and tomatoes on his 5 acre piece of land that overlooks the Mau Escarpment.

“I have acquired an irrigation kit and I plan to expand my horticultural enterprise in the coming years. I have to learning to be better informed on the new ideas”, he said.

Over the last decade, smallholder farmers have been credited with producing most of the vegetables and fruits consumed in the country.

(ends)

Carbon credits and coffee production in Africa

Smart Carbon credit coffee              by Mwangi Mumero

Coffee farmers in Kenya, Uganda and Ethiopia may soon benefit from a ‘smart carbon credit’ compensation scheme that is already earning cocoa farmers in Ghana a handsome income.

Experts are already in discussion with the African Union and COMESA officials on the program that will see coffee farmers insured from lost income brought about by climate change.

“We are in discussion with regional officials on the possibility of initiating such a program in the East African region”, observed Dr John J. Mason, the developer of the ‘Climate Smart Cocoa initiative’ in an interview with this writer in Nairobi.

The risky nature of agriculture in the continent has resulted in few organizations getting interested in financing farmers.

“The biggest challenge facing African farmers is lack of insurance, credit and farm inputs. Farmers face risks ranging from effects of climate change, changes in prices, pest and diseases but there are few insurance companies willing to underwrite this risk”, observed Dr Mason, the Founder and Chief Executive officer Nature Conservation Research Centre (NCRC) – a leading NGO in West Africa and a grantee of the Rockefeller Foundation.

Cocoa production in Ghana has increasingly been threatened by climate change, as deforestation continues, with demand for food and cocoa production opens up more land.

“Over 80 percent of the forest cover in Ghana has been lost as land for growing cocoa is being sought. There has been a need to increase cocoa production without compromising forest cover in the country”, Dr Mason said, adding that players in the global cocoa sector have been helpful in dealing with effects of climate change.

The ‘Climate Smart Cocoa Program’ involves cocoa farmers, insurance companies, the government and global cocoa millers such a Cadbury and Nestle.

Under pressure from the European Union and climate change activists to reduce their carbon emissions, multinational companies such as Cadbury and Nestle have come out to pay for their emission to cocoa producers in the developing world.

This Climate Mitigation Income from these companies is then channeled to insurance companies in Ghana which then underwrite the risks cocoa farmers face in producing their beans.

“Farmers are given a production threshold say of 800 kg of cocoa per acre. If production drops below this threshold, insurance companies compensate farmers for the loss occasioned by climate effects such as drought or other risks. As with other risks few of the farmers are compensated annually making it a profitable business for insurance companies”, he asserted.

The compensation is channeled through local banks which have also agreed to finance individual farmers – increasing usage of farm inputs and other crop requirements.

While the scheme is currently at pilot stage with the 60,000 farmers involved, cocoa production has risen for the farmers currently under the program.

According to Dr Mason, participating farmers have seen cocoa production in their farm rise from an average national yield of 300-400 kg per acre to over 1,200-1,500 kg.

“Once farmers realize that they can be compensated for loss in yield, they are bound to improve their crop husbandry practices impacting positively in overall crop performance. They are also eager to employ practices that absorb as much carbon dioxide from the atmosphere”, noted Dr Mason adding that the involvement with the farmers has seen an 80 per cent reduction in carbon emissions from cocoa farms from 20 tones to 2 tones under this climate smart initiative.

He laments that carbon credit schemes in East Africa have been weather indexed unlike the more beneficial yield indexed insurance in Ghana.

But for cocoa farmers to increase yield, they have had to change their farming methods.

“They have had to increase shade in their cocoa farms from the common 4-5 per cent to 40-50 percent as cocoa is badly affected by too much sun. Availability of farm inputs as banks and other financial organizations are assured of their returns has also improved yields”.

 A Canadian national, Dr Mason has worked in Ghana for over 30 years and is regarded as a leading voice for conservation in West Africa. He was one of the first to draw attention to the long-term threat of climate change to the crucial cocoa sector.

His organization has been working closely with the agricultural extension in the government to increase knowledge on climate smart cocoa to local farmers.

“ We have also be in negotiations with insurances companies, local banks and input companies to bring them on board in developing the system where all players can benefit”, he said noting that to improve information sharing information technology is used.

Accordingly, every cocoa farm is mapped with GIS and the owner/ land use information digitalized and supplied to banks, insurance companies and extension personnel.

Using this information, it has become easier for banks and insurance companies to authenticate land ownership and reduce fraud cases as it is hard for anyone to present fake documents.

 Dr Mason believes that under the program, Ghana may be able to produce over 2 million metric tones of cocoa – a 40 per cent increase in a few years.

With this increased production, Ghana will need to reduce its land under cocoa- otherwise global cocoa prices will plummet –affecting the national economy. The freed land will then be put under reforestation program. (ends)

Investors use PDAs and GPS in agriculture production

Precision agriculture           by Mwangi Mumero

Kenyan investors are being sought to partner with an Indian company to provide IT based agricultural extension services.

With the poor agricultural extension service across Africa, an Indian company is introducing an IT solution that links up farmers, meteorological department, satellite imaging and agricultural experts from the comfort of their sitting rooms.

“We are allowing farmers to participate in seeking solutions to their farming issues by linking them with experts without leaving their farms. Together with data obtained from the Met department and satellite images, possible solutions on various issues can then be communicated back to the farmer via GPS”, observed Mr. Prasenjit Gupta, a lead technician at Stesalit Limited, an India firm behind this precision agriculture solution during an interview at a recent Food Expo at the Kenyatta International Conference Centre (KICC).

But for the farmers to benefit from this solution, they will be required to purchase a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) a hand-held device similar to a mobile phone that is connected to a GPS network.

GSM is a satellite based communication network –similar to GSM used by local mobile service providers- but with a wider reach.

The farmers will also need to register their farms and then subscribe to this agricultural information service offered by the company.

“Currently, we sell the GSM PDA at $ 690 (Ksh 60,000) with all the accompanying software. In India, we have been selling these devices and service to the state governments which are the sole providers and regulators of agricultural extension services”, noted Mr Gupta adding that the company is looking for a Kenyan company to partner with and offer the service directly to farmers.

   This form of precision agriculture incorporates the PDA, intelligently processed satellite images displaying plant health parameters status such as fertilizer usage; data from sensors in the farms that provided information on possible pest or insect attack; and a decision support system for providing suggestion to farmers based on the input received from the above components.

The system seeks agricultural experts-mainly on retainer basis – to provide interpretations on various data obtained from farmers, met department and sensors in the field.

For instance, a farmer in Kitale- over 500 km from Nairobi may feel that they need information on the expected maize yield in the year even before they have established the crop.

“With the PDA, the farmers will input relevant data such as size of the land, maize variety they want to grow, the yield they obtained the year before etc.

They will then send the information through to a central computer system which has satellite information on Kitale and specific area the farmer comes from. The satellite image has information such as soil type, Ph, etc.

Information from the weather department will also be used to project rainfall, temperature and other parameters within the planting season. With this information, agricultural experts will be able to analyze and give possible scenarios to the farmers which will allow the farmer to make informed decision on the way forward”, explained Mr Gupta.

The collection of information, analysis and feedback is provided directly to the farmers without them making the arduous journey to Nairobi or other research stations.

At an extra expense, a farmer may install sensors within the farm that will provide real-time information on possible disease and pest attack allowing farmers to make corrective measures in advance- lowering risk and improving profits. Experts will use this information to advice farmers on different pesticides to use, their costs and hazards.

“This Decision Support System therefore integrates information from farmers, satellite images from the farms, weather reports from the metrological department. Agricultural experts then analyze the information and give farmers answers vital in decision making”, he said noting that in Indian, the company has dealt only with the government which has purchased the PDAs and given them to farmers. The government also hires experts to interpret data and provide farmers with the information they need in their farms.

According to Mr Gupta, the company is seeking a Kenya company that will partner with them.

“We will provide the PDAs and other software while the local company will hire experts to interpret the raw data and give farmers feedback on time. Since it is a subscription service, a local company will be able to make profit from the service if well marketed”, he said.

The Kenyan company will also seek out farmers through aggressive marketing campaigns.

This West Bengal based company will then maintain the system’s hardware and software for the next 6 years.   (ends)

Dolichos beans: Improving plant protein sources

hoto: A Dolichos beans plot    Photo: Mwangi Mumero

Dolichos beans                            by Mwangi Mumero

While demand for dolichos beans in the United States and Europe continues to rise, local farmers in dry part of the country where the crop thrives perpetually suffer poor from farm gate prices.

Farmers in Laikipia have hoarded their harvested beans awaiting good prices expected in December and early next year.

“I have threshed 5 bags each weighing 90 kg and I am waiting for better prices later in the year. At the current farm gate price of Ksh 70 per kg, we will be making losses. We anticipate that the prices per kilo will peak Ksh 150 by December when we will sell and make a handsome profit”, said Margaret Warukira Mwangi, a dolichos farmers in Wangwaci, area of Sipili in Laikipia East.

Hardy and tolerant to harsh environmental conditions, dolichos are rich in proteins and provide value addition to land use in marginal areas of the country.

 

The beans are black eyed and come as the black or brown seeds. The beans are rich in proteins, vitamins C, mineral salts such as copper, potassium, magnesium, iron and phosphorus. They are also rich in fibre.

Known as Njahi- they have a special place in Kenyan local diets and are usually cooked when there are dowry ceremonies or when a new born child arrives.

 It is also used as animal fodder and green manure in mixed crop-livestock systems. Bean plant is an excellent nitrogen fixer and is sometimes grown as a cover crop or for livestock fodder.

 Despite its importance, dolichos bean is still a neglected crop with unexploited potential. But now farmers in marginal areas have been looking forward to low-input drought tolerant crop that mature within short period.

“Its short maturity period of 5 months and its regeneration potential has endeared local farmers to the crop. The crop does not require large space and has the potential to creep like sweet potatoes “, notes George Kamau, a field officer with Tree is Life Project, a Nyahururu based non-governmental organisation that works closely with farmers in arid parts of Laikipia and Nyandarua.

Kamau says that a new Katumani variety recently introduced in the areas has interested farmers though some challenges of raising the crop persist.

To obtain maximum benefits in terms of input and extension services, local farmers have formed Kauka Livestock Keepers Group which has become the focal point of exchanging ideas on emerging issues such as dolichos growing.

“Unlike other beans that are uprooted during harvesting, dolichos continue to produce pods even after the initial harvesting.. They resprout and can continue to produce new pods from the fifth month to eight months when they are uprooted. Demand for the bean is quite high locally and internationally though prices per 90 kg bag can sometimes be erratic”, said Peter Chege, the treasurer of the 16- member Kauka Livestock Keepers Group.

At present, a least 14 members of the group have planted dolichos in their farms with about 14 acres under the crop.

Most farmers in the region have pure stands under dolichos which are planted at a spacing of 3 feet by 2 feet.

“At Ksh 225 per kg of seeds, no fertilizer application, the cost of production in quit low initially. But regular spraying against pest and blight presents the biggest challenge to local producers. As a new crop variety, farmers are quickly learning the challenges associated with raising the crop, whose yields are high compared to indigenous varieties”, observes Kamau.

According to the extension officer, spraying against pest –mainly mites, thrips and cut worms has to be done every ten days especially at the flowering stage. This has led to high overhead cost for the farmers as the majority are spraying crops for the first time.

“Too much rain during flowering promotes blight and farmers have to spend huge amounts on spraying to save the crop. Otherwise, with minimal rainfall, the crop will earn the farmers huge profits as happened a few years ago when prices hit Ksh 150 per 90 kg bag fetching farmers Ksh 13,500 for the bag”.

With her crop awaiting second harvesting period, Mrs. Mwangi- who has already harvested and stored 5 bags from her one-and-a-half plot under dolichos- expects to get another 15 bags.

“If favourable prices of Ksh 150 per kg are attainable by early next year, I will be able to cover all my overheads and still earn some good profit. Considering that ours is mixed farming where we keep chicken, goats and grow other crops like maize, dolichos add value to our farming and cushions us from dire time when other crops fail”, she says.

Another challenge that dolichos farmers have to content with is threshing. While the maize thresher has in the past been used to thresh crops like indigenous dolichos, the Katumani variety has to be shelled manually to minimize loss of the beans.

While little marketing information of dolichos is available , reports from the internet indicate that dolichos has in high demand in the developed world as consumers become choosy –looking for food that have grown with low inputs.

In the West however, the beans are cooked as pods. Young immature pods have a strong flavor and are cooked and eaten like green beans.

 

 Young leaves are eaten raw in salads and older leaves are cooked like spinach.

 

Flowers are eaten raw or steamed. The large starchy root tubers can be boiled and baked. The immature seeds can be boiled and eaten like any shelly bean.

 

“If local farmers could be linked with the huge markets in the West –particularly in the US and Europe, they will be able to get better prices for their crop with a bigger impact on their socio-economic status. The acreage will also increase as more farmers get interested in the crop”, observes Kamau, an extension officer with expansive knowledge on dryland farming.

 

The World Banks notes that increased access to better markets for the mainly rural based smallholder farmers will boost food production, reduce poverty and improve local income levels. It will also reduce food insecurity in Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia- two regions that occasionally require food aid. (Ends)