We understand the seriousness that this situation places the very vulnerable smallholder farmers who rely on us to provide modern farming technologies affordably. Farmers rely on us to help power their livelihood, and we understand the responsibility that entails. Meeting that responsibility day in and day out, in any environment, is our primary focus. This enduring mission guides us as we closely monitor, assess and respond to this situation.

So what are we doing? We have slashed our products and services costs by 10%. This frees up more money for farmers to channel to other necessities during this time. Secondly, we are increasing extension services to further ensure all our farmers are producing at optimum. We know Kenya shall conquer this pandemic, however, we must ensure we continue to produce to feed our population staying at home. As our doctors go to work, police protect our streets and our leaders mobilise us to be responsible citizens, our farmers shall keep growing and we thank them for their dedication.

“We know that food is essential all year round, but in the face of a pandemic it’s critical that shelves remain stocked and supplies remain plentiful. That gives people confidence and courage and hope for the future.”

US Secretary of Agriculture: Sonny Perdue

Secondly, we have implemented a Work-from-Home Policy to our office team with meetings going virtual to ensure continuity of business. Our phone lines are up 24/7 with WhatsApp business chats implemented to allow any of our clients with queries to have realtime discussions with our team. Our field team have been trained on the importance of social distancing and constant sanitizing to minimise the risk of contacting the coronavirus.

These precautionary measures have been taken to limit the potential spread of the virus, to support our employees in this challenging time and to ensure we maintain our ability to serve you, our customer, for the long term.

We are committed to stay on course and continue to provide affordable farming technologies to farmers especially during this period where our farmers will require the most support that organisations can offer.

Please be safe and stay healthy.

Lesson 1: Less is more!

Farmers have a lot of factors to consider when growing crops, what seeds to use? What fertilisers to apply? Do I irrigate in the morning or evening? How much water should I use? and the list goes on and on. We needed to lessen these questions so that they could grow more and increase their income. So, we decided to bring on board partners that would address each question a farmer would have across the value chain. From soil testing companies, to seed companies, to agronomists and even crop insurance companies all under 1 roof leaving our farmers to focus on purely what they love most which was crop husbandry.

Lesson 2: Weekly crop updates

We realized that visiting a farmer once a month to train them on how to grow inside a greenhouse was a long time and any recommendations given during this time were not quick to turn around the crop. We had to increase the number of visits so that we could be able to address any pests and diseases issues in time and avoid further damage. Even though some farmers received weekly visits, we had other farmers that only needed 1 visit every 2 weeks. The success was actually more visible on the bi weekly visits and allowed us to adopt this as the standard agronomic practice for all our farmers under the greenhouse plus+ program.

Lesson 3: Economies of Scale

Different farmers took different sizes of greenhouses from our Kadogo greenhouse 8M by 15M=120sq.m all the way to our Mzoefu Greenhouse 16M by 30M=480sq.m (almost the size of a basket ball pitch). In all these greenhouses, they all had fixed costs while some costs were variable and depended on the size of the greenhouse. Variable costs included seeds, fertilizers, chemicals and even water for irrigation. However, the fixed costs were labour salaries, agronomic visits and produce collection costs. Farmers with smaller greenhouses were using 1 person to take care of their greenhouse while farmers with even 2 units of the Mzoefu Greenhouse-16M by 30M were using the same 1 person. Salaries were the same but given that the production area was bigger on the second case, it allowed farmers with bigger units to enjoy a bigger pie. Agronomic visits were made 2 per month with each visit costing the same. Since this is taken as a consultancy, it has 1 cost not dependent on the growing area. The major disadvantage was the high capital costs of taking up the Mzoefu which costed 4 times the cost of the Kadogo. Our best performing size that was not too high for the farmer and at the same time the yield was significant to cover for the expenses was the Mwanzishi Greenhouse 8M by 30M. With an average of 33% return on investment per annum.

Lesson 3: Planting Cycles

Most of our farmers planted all their crops at the same time therefore when they went out of season, they did not have income to cushion them from monthly expenses such as salaries and utilities. For farmers that had taken more than one unit, we followed planting cycles by spacing the planting dates of each unit by up to 1 month which allowed them to have continuous harvests through out the entire year. The output of course would fluctuate but they were confident on having income spread out through out the growing cycle.

Lesson 4: Farming Records

As much as we had agronomists visiting these farms every two weeks, we needed to know what activities took place in the farm. We were able to note that farmers that had farming records had less occurrence of pests and diseases and their yield was much more. Identifying even causes of problems was easy as we could simply refer to the records for all information concerning the amount of water irrigated, the number of seeds planted, chemicals used and fertilizers applied. Farmers with records also found expansion easier as they had a point of reference for all their farming practice information. At the time of produce collection and payment reconciliation, it was also easy for the farmers to correct deliveries that our customers had complaints with. We hope to continue this practice to allow full traceability of our farms enabling the customers to get healthy foods.

Lesson 5: Management matters

We had farmers that succeeded and farmers that failed. When we did our root cause analysis to understand why failures occurred yet all farmers had the same agronomist, same seeds and same inputs, we realized that 87% of farmers failed because of poor crop management by the farm workers. We dug deeper and realized that the farm workers left to operate the greenhouses did not have any background or experience in agriculture. They were new to aspects of weeding, spraying and even irrigation. This made it difficult for them to implement recommendations given by the agronomists. In some cases, farm workers were spraying the wrong chemicals to the wrong plant causing more damage to the crops. For farms that had farm workers with experiences in farming, implementation of recommendations by the agronomist was excellent and this translated to greater yield.

Over the course of the implementation of greenhouse plus+, we have been able to deliver over 438 Tonnes of fresh produce from farms across Kenya to our customers both local and abroad. This access to the market has greatly helped our farmers who now can return their investment and continue growing their production sites in order to gradually increase their turnover.

We believe, by bringing on board all these partners needed on the value chain and connecting farmers to markets, we can increase income for farmers while ensuring we feed our growing urban population.

This product is currently available to all farmers in Kenya with plans to slowly roll out to East Africa.

We then slowly decided to listen to them and provide a solution because as a business, it is our role to adapt to our customer needs. However, we wanted to get it right from the beginning and so we applied to SPRING Accelerator a jointly funded business accelerator by DFID, USAID, Australian Aid and the Nike Foundation. In this program through design thinking developed possible solutions to these farmers that needed help on inputs and markets.

Several ideas were presented and had huge potential to be actual solutions but we had to select one and move forward with it. The only thing that we knew would ease the decision making was research and data. You know how they say in data we trust? Yes, that’s exactly where we were as a company. We needed data for us to determine which solution would work in the market.

Over 3 months we launched a research project across Kiambu County interviewing farmers on the problems they faced and the possible solutions we had for them and allowed them to choose what they felt would be a perfect fit solution. In the end, we analysed the data and almost all our farmers loved our idea called Greenhouse Plus+.

Here is why; Greenhouse Plus+ is a greenhouse plus inputs, agronomy support, crop insurance and market linkages all bundled in one cost leaving the farmer to focus on what they do best – production! Farmers wanted to focus on weeding, transplanting and tending their crops but not having to worry about who’s going to buy their products when it is ready. We went ahead and secured partnerships with vendors such as supermarkets, mama mboga and even schools where our farmers would then sell their harvests.

So, back to your question, do you want a return once you purchase a greenhouse? Well, Greenhouse Plus+ is the product for you. By partnering with seed companies such as Royal Seed Kenya; Agronomists from KALRO centres across Kenya, insurance companies such as UAP Insurance to protect you against adverse weather (We all know this year 2018 floods were a headache!), soil and water testing companies such as Crop Nutritional Laboratory Services-CROPNUTS, we have managed to provide you with a greatly de-risked investment option while ensuring you have the right skilled people to guide you during your production as we collect the harvests and issue you with payment.

We are confident with these new product offering as we believe it will create employment for many young Kenyans while ensuring we are a food secure country in a sustainable manner. Happy farming!

Common vegetables and fruits exported from African countries to the European Union (EU) include;

Demand for dried fruits has been on the rise, the UK being the biggest importer. Common dried fruits include mangoes, apples, pistachio and grapes.

What has led to the increase in export crops over the last few years?

1.  Attractive prices in the export market; which is almost double what the local markets offer.
2. Consumers’ desire for diversity and awareness of health benefits from these crops in developed
   nations.
3. Adverse effects of the Greenhouse Effect in developed nations making the African continent a
   viable candidate for growing exotic horticultural produce.

[A table from the EPC showing export statistics since 2011 to 2015. Source from http://epckenya.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=43&Itemid=62]

Did you know; In the 1990s, Kenya was the main supplier of fresh and chilled vegetables in the European Union?

One can either export crops through a company, what is known as Contract Farming or one can do it on their own. Good thing, The Export Promotion Company (EPC) has got us covered. For the lone rangers, the EPC has been kind enough to outline directions on how to become an exporter of horticultural
produce on this link;
Click Here

Starting on your own might be difficult especially the part where one has to source for clients in foreign countries, which leaves the option of contract farming. There are a number of companies here in Kenya dealing with contract farming; Illuminum Greenhouses being one of them.☺

Some of the benefits of Contract farming include;

• Assurance of markets to farmers. Lack of markets is one of the major reasons why investors shy
  away from the agricultural sector.
• Farmers’ price risk is often reduced as commodity prices are specified in advance.
• Contract farming opens up new markets which would otherwise be unavailable to small-scale
  farmers.
• Elimination of middlemen who have been known to exploit farmers.

Tips:
1. In contract farming, always insist on contracts. If need be, have a lawyer go through them to
ensure the authenticity of the transactions.
2. For the lone rangers, thorough research is required of the bodies involved in the Export business
and the regulations in place. A good place to start would be KEPHIS and audit firms such as DNV-GL that award Global GAP Certificates upon successful farm audits.

Happy Exporting!

Matters Seeds…

A seed is an embryonic plant encapsulated in a protective outer covering called a seed coat. Seeds can be grown in many ways; Small seeds must be placed on the surface of the seed-raising mix because if covered too thickly they might not germinate. For other seeds, it’s recommended that they are planted at twice the depth of the thickness of the seed itself.

Pros;

• For crops, such as beans, that are quick to germinate, one may consider starting from seeds.
• Seeds are much cheaper than seedlings.
• For those of us who like choices, starting from seed offers one an option of choosing between different varieties available in the market. Seedlings confine the farmer to the variety used by their provider.

Cons;

• Planting the seed directly is riskier, since the seeds have to put up with hazards such as adverse weather patterns, like drought or flood, high wind (for open-field farming), pests, and weeds. In order to be successful, one has to ensure that the environment in which the seeds are growing in, is conducive.

• The farmer also has to be prepared to thin the seedlings; that is, pulling out a few plants between the rows to make sure even spacing between the plants. Lack of spacing will result in crowded plants that will compete for light, water, and nutrients. Crowded plants have also been to be prone to diseases due to the lack of airflow.
• Seeds generally take a little longer to grow than seedlings. It’s good to note that there are some crops whose germination rate is slower than most plants even if you plant them as seedlings. It is because of the growth rate of the 2 that leads to the second difference; seeds are cheaper as compared seedlings.

Matters Seedlings…

A seedling is a young plant grown from a seed in a nursery.

Pros;

• Seedlings will give you a significant head start on the season, since their maturity rate will be shorter and will result in an earlier harvest.
• On the other hand, most seedlings will take a minimum of 2 weeks to germinate.
• Seedlings are more resistant to pests, because they are more mature and stronger when transplanted. Many pests love snacking on the tiny seedlings. Therefore, the risk of losing the plants is lower as compared to seeds.

Cons;

• Seedlings are definitely much more expensive to buy than raising your own from seed.
• With seedlings one is restricted to the variety grown by the supplier.
• Seedlings pose a threat of introducing weeds and/or diseases into your farm. It’s therefore important to get your seedlings from a certified company/producer to avoid such inconveniences.

All in all, the choice between the 2, Seeds or Seedlings, will come down to the farmer’s preference.

When we were approached to run with this project by some of the real estate companies, they all had one goal in mind, for us to “guarantee” a return of a minimum Ksh.900,000 per year from an 8M by 15M Greenhouse which is the standard size of the structure in the market. We first had an issue on the term and word guarantee which basically means “… a formal promise or assurance (typically in writing) that certain conditions will be fulfilled…” Secondly, on the value of the return. It was indeed ambitious and is yet to be validated by any greenhouse farmer under our umbrella that we have worked with over the past 5 years.

Why ambitious? The 8M by 15M Greenhouse takes in 400 plants with a spacing of 60cm each with a practical average yield of 15Kgs per plant over a complete season (9Months). A kilo of greenhouse tomatoes usually fluctuates across the year as it competes with the outdoor grown tomatoes dropping prices up to Ksh.20 per kilo while when the open field farmers aren’t harvesting, greenhouse farmers fetch up to Ksh.80 per kilo. However, with this concept, the farmer is assured a fixed rate of Ksh.50 per kilo giving the total returns at Ksh.300,000 as gross revenue. It is expected that expenses such as fertiliser, chemicals, agronomic support and management charges are deducted before sending the net revenue to the client with most expenses averaging Ksh.100,000 leaving a net value of Ksh.200,000.

Where then does Ksh.900,000 arise from? It is our desire and belief that farmers and investors are provided with the right information before committing their hard earned money to acquire this concept. For our partners, we have come out openly and put the facts on the table that we as a company cannot guarantee returns but instead can assure our clients that we have  the experience and expertise needed to ensure their investment gives a return sufficient to make the concept sustainable.

We shall at all times remain transparent on this matter and look forward to continually working with Kenyans in an open and honest manner to achieve both improved incomes and a food secure country.

Since we don’t want to be named the ungrateful generation that destroyed the soil and all hope (food wise) for next generation, we encourage safer methods in agriculture. One of the oldest, organic techniques that have been used to minimise pathogens in the soil is Crop Rotation. It’s actually a proven and recommended technique by most soil testing laboratories here in Kenya. Crop rotation entails alternating between plants from different family groups. This will gradually reduce the amount of the pest population present in the soil.

Some pathogens that cause crop diseases survive in the soil from year to year in one form or the other. Rotating from host crops to non-host crops prevents the buildup of large populations of pathogens. First, you have to know whether there are pathogens present in the soil which can be achieved through a simple soil test. We use Crop Nutrition laboratory here in Nairobi. The good thing about their reports is that they state the level of infection and the recommendations for each. Among the recommendations is crop rotation. For crop rotation to work efficiently the farmer has to alternate between crops from different FAMILY GROUPS.

The table below gives a rough idea of some of the popular crops grown here in Kenya that are in the same family group.

Say the soil tests positive for Fusarium oxysporum which affects plants in the Solanaceae family, one may advised to start with the plants in the Alliaceae family in the first season, grow crops in the Brassicaceae for the second season, plant crops in the Cucurbitaceae family in the third season then grow crops in the Solanaceae family in the fourth season. It’s important to note that recommendations differ depending on the infection level.

However, some pathogens have been known to live in the soil for longer periods of time, therefore, it’s advised to test the soil after each season to know the level of infection in the soil.

Integrated farming takes many animal-plant relationships under its wing but today we’re going to look at poultry. Poultry requires a small investment when compared to other animals. With Ksh. 1000 ($10) you can get two or three young hens (teen chicks?). With proper care, one can earn a few coins from selling eggs, or from selling meat from poultry.

Now imagine combining poultry with something else, say fish rearing or horticulture. These relationships give rise to a self-sufficient system that minimises costs. Let’s take a closer look at the some of the integrated systems being widely practised.

1. Integrated chicken-fish farming.

This is a method commonly practised in Asia. It incorporates chicken breeding for meat or eggs with fish rearing. Chicken can be raised over or adjacent to the ponds and the poultry droppings are used as food for the fish. Chicken excreta produces nitrates that are very good at plankton formation. Planktons is used as food for fish. It’s very important however to ensure that the poultry is vaccinated.

• Benefits of this method include:
• Maximum use of space.
• The poultry excreta is used as fertiliser and feed for the fish, therefore, saves up on these two costs.
• A hygienic poultry house.
• Water from the pond is very rich in nitrates.Therefore, it can be used for horticultural purposes which will reduce the cost of fertilisers.

Good news is that the method is slowly being practised by farmers in Kenya. With the recent opening in the fish market don’t you think it’s high time you made use of that opportunity?

And by the way, you can also do this with rice and ducks. Hang on to our next blog for insight into it.

Image from: http://www.nafis.go.ke/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/untitled.jpg

Happy Planting!

Aquaponics presents an integrated farming system whereby; waste from fish is used as fertiliser for plants and plants purify the water by removing the nutrients increasing oxygen concentration. Waste from fish contains nutrients which are essential for plant growth.

Aquaponic system. Image from http://organicdailypost.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/aquaponics-media-based.jpg

The set-up of the fish and plants represents a closed system such that;

• Water containing waste from the fish is pumped to the plants.
• Plants absorb nutrients from the water, in the process cleaning the water which is then pumped back to the fish.

What kind of fish can be used?

Any fish can be used. The only catch is that you’ll have to adhere to the requirements for the different types of fish. Types of fish used in some of the aquaponics systems here in Kenya are catfish, tilapia and trout. Catfish and tilapia do well in warm climates (temperature of between 25 to 28 degrees) whereas trout do well in cold climates (temperatures between 12 to 18 degrees). People in cold areas can make use of a greenhouse which will solve the temperature problem. It is important to ensure that both fish and plants have access to enough oxygen to prevent stress. Ensure that the water is clean to eliminate diseases in the fish which might be transferred to the plants or lead to the death of fish which might slow growth of plants due to inadequate nutrients.

What kind of plants can be grown using this system?

Strawberries are one of the common plants grown in Kenya using the aquaponics system. Other plants such as tomatoes, lettuce, herbs such as basil and mint can be grown using this system. However, it’s important to note that requirements differ from crop to crop.

Benefits:

• Maximizes space.
• Conserves water through recycling.
• It’s purely organic. Farmers are advised not to use chemical based pesticides since they will kill the fish since the water from the plants is recycled back to the fish.
• Increases income for farmers.
• Saves up on costs of fertiliser since it is a self-sufficient system.

Good news is that it’s being practised here in Kenya! Here’s a success story from a Kenyan farmer dealing in Aquaponicshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3o5rm5z1v68.

Happy Planting!!

What do I plant?

This is a common question asked by aspiring farmers. This question is normally followed by a series of questions, Will it do well? Is there a ready market? What are the returns?

One of the things to consider is the type of soil on your land. The soil provides your plants with the essential nutrients, water and air, necessary for healthy growth and development. Knowing the type of soil on one’s land will go a long way in guiding you on what to plant. There are many types of soil; they include loamy, sandy, clay, and silty. In Kenya, we have loamy sands which are found in the highlands, alluvial (silt) soils found along river valleys, volcanic soils found in sub-humid regions such as the lake regions and black cotton soils found in places like Mwea. Different soils have different advantages and shortcomings; the sooner you get to know them the better. Soil tests are also encouraged as a preventive measure before planting.

Another thing you need to consider is the climate. This mainly applies to farmers who opt for open field farming. Climatic factors such as rain, wind, humidity, temperature and light are essential to plant growth but excess or lack off might negatively affect your crops. For example, wind is essential for pollination but excess wind might cause excessive water loss or even destroy your plants. One of the major things to consider is the market availability. You don’t want to be stuck with 1000kgs worth of produce. Find out the types of crops that are profitable. One may also research on the types of companies out there that buy crops for exports and compare this with prices in local markets. Obviously the companies will win but they might require a lot of things for one to be considered viable for their export programs, thus, making local markets the best solution. Examples of websites that provide farmers with marketing information in Kenya are National Farmers Information Service (NAFIS), M-farm and many more that are just a click away.

Next comes the wait. Anxiety sets in, hair falls out, prayer meetings are held, sacrifices are done (LOL). Mrs. X told you how her tomatoes did so well but yours don’t look like hers. What could be the problem? Most of the time, you lack good advice and not from Mrs. X, but from an experienced professional we call an agronomist. Agronomists are research scientists who study plants and soil to help farmers get better crop yields. An experienced agronomist will provide information and guidance on the right chemicals, fertilizers and inputs to use from planting all the way to harvesting.

I hope this information helps.

Happy Planting!