Machinery

: 06 November 2017; Hits: 6294

Egerton World Ploughing Championships to bring forth Canadian Team

Tom Evans.jpg

For the first time Team Canada members are ready to contest the 64^th World Ploughing Championship scheduled to be held at Ngongongeri Farm in Egerton University from November 27^th to December 2^nd . 22 year old Jay Lennox, the reigning Canadian conventional ploughing champion and 41 year old Tom Evans, the reversible ploughing champion are aiming to win the world title.

Jay Lennox became the Ontario Junior Ploughing Champion in 2014, went on to take the national title and last year captured his county’s conventional ploughing title. In 2015 Tom Evans won the Ontario reversible champion title and last year became the Canadian Champion. Both Lennox and Evans are competing in the World Championship for the first time. Their coach is Daryl Hostrawser who has been ploughing in competition events since 1966. He has been a competitor in the World Championship three times and has coached Team Canada for the past six years.

The Canadians will arrive in Nairobi in November 18^th and transfer to Egerton on the following day. They will spend time at the FMD workshop in Nakuru hooking up their ploughs and hydraulic controls to the two Massey Ferguson MF 4708 tractors which have been provided for the competition by FMD.

Several days have been set aside for Jay Lennox and Tom Evans to adapt to the climatic and soil conditions in Egerton. They will try out the Massey Ferguson tractors and their equipment for several days before participating in the official practice session from November 27^th to 30^th.

Over 20 countries have already confirmed participation in the event and more are expected before the entry deadline. The 2017 World Ploughing Championship is being held in Kenya for the second time after an interval of 22 years. In 1995 the Kenya round attracted entries from 40 countries.

The Kenya Ploughing Organisation (KPO) was established in 1996 under the Agricultural Society of Kenya (ASK) umbrella to organize national ploughing contests and help raise the standards of seed bed preparation. The KPO holds countrywide competitions to select participants in the National Championship to earn places for the global contest.

In 1996 Kenya was represented in the championships by Mark Iraru and Peter Oduor Obuora then Mark Kirui Rongei and Joshua Kiptim Kigen in 2015. This year Kenya will be represented again by Joshua Kiptim Kigen under Conventional Competitors and Simon Otindi Oroni under Reversible Competitors.

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: 18 October 2017; Hits: 10745

Village Industrial Power offering innovative clean energy for rural farmers

Rural farmers can increase the value of their crops ten-fold by using a new technology – Village industrial mobile power plant. The technology which was introduced in Kenya in 2016 uses agricultural waste as fuel; it has 10 Kw engine which creates thermal, electrical and mechanical energy to transform crops into high value products. VIP’s pilot power plants are currently on trial in East Africa.

The plant enables farmers shell 1 ton of maize in 2 hours for Ksh. 150 per bag. It thus reduces the chances of aflatoxin infection and improves the quality of maize. It also reduces unpredictable cost of manual labor used to dry maize in the sun.

“VIP’s mobile power plant unit is robust, reliable, and on demand, enabling farmers to process their own crops and participate directly in the value chain, VIP’s carbon neutral engine is fuel flexible, using waste such as maize cobs, coffee parchment, mango pits, and bagasse to supply thermal, electric, and mechanical power” says Maggie Flanagan, the company’s Vice President for Business Development.

According to Maggie, the VIP engine is fuel flexible, clean burning, and able to run on numerous biomass feed stocks. The super-heated steam in turn produces heat that can be used to produce either hot air or hot water on demand for a wide range of agricultural applications. The VIP unit offers the lowest cost of electricity in its class. It’s designed to be robust and easily operated. Using only two wrenches, the engine can be disassembled and reassembled in an hour. It can be an economic engine of growth for rural development.

The Village Industrial Power Plant at the 2017 Nairobi International Trade Fair, Jamhuri grounds. PHOTO/JAPHET RUTO

In Kenya, VIP has set up a maize processing unit in western Kenya used to shell and dry maize. Properly dried maize allows farmers to get a better market price and store enough maize for personal consumption during the dry seasons.

The machine is also used in mango drying, small dairy processing, small scale sugar processing, fish drying, irrigation, pumping and purifying water.

Maggie Flanagan notes that farmers are free to have the plant tested on their farms for free to add value to their crops. “We have helped Kambiti East farmer’s group dry their mangoes for more profits” says Maggie.

“Since we started this project of drying mangoes, we have faced so many challenges, because when there is no enough heat from the sun, our mangoes get spoiled. Now with the VIP dryer, we can slice mangoes from 8:30 am to 2: 00 pm daily without worry, and the results are good unlike before” said Fridah Mbai, Vice Chairperson and Supervisor of Kambiti East Mango Growers Group.

Another farmer Raymond Kiprop, who is the owner of Raymond Agricultural Services, says he likes the technology because it is cost effective and cheaper to run it as you only need residues of the crop to generate power. “Another reason that I like this machine is the drying part where you now use the steam that is generated to dry your maize up to the required moisture level” adds Kiprop.

Maggie Flanagan can be reached on +254 790 919 164 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

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: 02 October 2017; Hits: 12221

Solar Milk Pasteurizer to prolong milk shelf life

solar pasteurizer.JPG

The solar milk pasteurizer is directly heated by the sun and the hot water produced used for pasteurizing milk. PHOTO/KALRO

A new milk preserving technology using a solar milk pasteurizer for smallholder farmers seeking to minimize milk losses along the marketing chain especially in the arid and semi-arid lands has been developed by the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization. The new technology will help milk farmers and business vendors prolong the shelf life of milk and hence improve market- ability and generate more income.

Milk marketing is an important income earning opportunity for people in the arid and semi-arid lands (ASALs) of Kenya. For a long time, farmers have been using limited firewood to boil the milk hence placing intense pressure on the forests and destroying the environment.

The solar milk pasteurizer consists of a flat-plate water heating solar collector and a stainless steel cylindrical milk container. Water in the solar collector is directly heated by the sun and the hot water produced used for pasteurizing milk.

According to Marsabit KALRO officer F.Wayua, the abundant solar energy in ASALs can be used to pasteurize milk. A simple solar milk pasteurizer can be made locally with the aid of jua kali artisans. The materials required for fabrication include a flat plate solar collector, a stainless steel cylindrical tank, connecting pipes& valves and insulating materials (fiber glass, cotton, wool and saw dust). The materials can be obtained from native hardware shops close to the farmers’ residence.

After assembling and the device is ready for use, it is advisable to tilt the solar collector at 10-15° from the horizontal, facing the equator. Ensure you have good quality milk to be pasteurized and a piece of clean sterile (boiled) cotton cloth.

Procedure for Milk Pasteurization

Pasteurization should be done between 10 am and 4 pm when there is adequate solar radiation
Fill the system with water in the morning
Sieve milk using the cotton cloth
Pour the sieved milk in the milk container
Water in the solar collector is directly heated by the sun
The hot water produced is used for pasteurizing milk in the milk container
Circulation of hot water from the collector to the jacketed milk container continues as long as the sun is shining
Let the milk heat to 63°C and hold for 30 minutes or 85°C (when it starts to foam) and hold for 5 seconds.

The device is recommended for producers and milk traders in arid pastoral areas as they have limited access to grid electricity but have plenty of solar radiation. Milk Pasteurization makes milk safe for human consumption.

For more information contact: Centre Director, KARI Marsabit P.O. Box 147 – 60500 Tel. 069 – 2040 Wireless: 020 801 7018 Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

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