Smart farms

: 15 April 2016; Hits: 9550

How to turn farm trash to treasure

Farmers can turn trash into treasure by making briquette fuel from harvest waste for sale to both rural and urban residents.

Shelling coffee, wheat, maize, rice, beans, millet, maize, among others crops, chaff is always churned out as waste.

Together with maize stalks and rice and wheat straws from rice and other crops, these can be converted into cooking fuel that can generate extra income for the farmers, without much expertise.

Once one has the biomass to be used in the process, they will follow a few procedures to arrive at the fuel.

In simple terms, process can be described simply as sieving (crushing for big biomass), mixing, squeezing and carbonising biomass into fuel.

The first step is sieving the material to ensure the biomass in is the required size. This means big or long materials have to be sliced to a length of between 6 mm and 8 mm.

Soil or paper paste is used to bind the particles and should make about 10 per cent to 20 per cent of the whole biomass.

The content is taken through the second stage of drying. Drying will get rid of excess moisture content to 10 per cent, according to the Food for Agricultural Organisation.

Carbonisation will be done in the preheating process in an closed drum or kiln; they will turn black.

During carbonisation, the biomass is enclosed in a vessel to limit the amount of oxygen supporting limited combustion.Fire is regulated, and because of the enclosure, the content will just turn black as it happens to charcoal burning.

Densification of the mass will be done by a simple compressing briquette machine, which costs about Sh25,000.

The resultant 'balls' is cooled and packaged.

Unlike the ordinary charcoal, briquettes are hardy and can be transported for long distances without breaking.

Multiple statistics show that Nairobi residents consume at least 700 tonnes daily. Out of this, approximately 88 tonnes of dust result from breakages during transportation from remote areas.

Innovative women and youth groups in Kibra, Kahawa Sukari and other informal settlements are mixing this dust with soil, before drying it to get the black 'balls' briquettes for sale.

On average a two-kilo tin of briquettes fetches about Sh50 while ordinary charcoal of similar quantity costs between Sh60 and Sh80 in Nairobi.

Considering the amount of charcoal consumed daily in Nairobi, briquettes have a place in the current set up.

Research by World Agroforestry Centre, briquettes of about Sh3 can cook a traditional meal of maize and beans for five people. Cooking the same meal with charcoal or kerosene which would cost Sh26 and Sh45 respectively.

FAO describes briquettes as environmental friendly and clean energy.

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: 15 April 2016; Hits: 14843

A common weed that prevents coccidiosis in chicken

Poultry farmers in Kenya can now use oregano plant to prevent and cure coccidiosis, one of the deadliest poultry diseases estimated to be costing farmers across the world up to $800m every year.
The recent study the Meriden Animal Health which shows that plant has antimicrobial and antioxidant properties of the pure oil of oregano capable of repulsing coccidiosis is good news to millions of poultry farmers across the globe who are grappling with huge loses poultry loses and expenses brought about by coccidiosis invasion. According to the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), global cost of its prevention in chicken alone stands at $300 million a year.
Oregano, a common weed mostly used by farmers in Kenya to enhance ripening of fruits due to its warm leaves is said to have antibiotic growth promoters and coccidiostats which repulses coccidiosis, this according to a study which was published in the world poultry.net.
The study further shows that when its solution is given to chicken, it helps to improve their Feed Conversion Ratio FCR and prevent the occurrences of gastrointestinal pathogen invasion, which normally cause gastrointestinal. Its active components effectively kill these microorganisms, which include both gram positive and negative bacteria upon contact within the gut of the poultry.
READ ALSO: A weed that kill ticks on livestock
According to the study, oregano leaves are natural feed additive containing an exclusive oregano essential oil, which can be included in the feed or water given to poultry. A part from acting as feed flavour and appetite enhancer, the rich oregano oils provides several health benefits due to its antimicrobial and antioxidant properties.
In order to get effective oregano leaves solution, a farmer need to pound fresh leaves of this weed, add considerate amount of water and let its settle for at least six hours. 500g of pounded oregano leaves should be mixed with a half liter of water to get desired mixture.
Most rural poultry farmers in Kenya rely on herbs to prevent poultry diseases due to high cost of vaccines.

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: 15 April 2016; Hits: 10161

Fruits drying raises Kenyan farmers' earnings by 10 times

Fruit farmers in Kenya can earn more than 10 times, reduce post harvest loses and benefit from existing high market demand for dry fruits by simply drying their yields using low cost energy sources like solar and direct sunlight.
Azuri Health, a Nairobi based company dealing in dried fruits and vegetables, is buying a kilo of dried mangoes for Sh600-1000 while a kilo of raw ones retails for as low as Sh30 in the market. One requires 5-6 raw mangoes with an average weight of 300g to make a kilo of dried mangoes. With a raw mango retailing at an average price of Sh10, its means a farmer who sells them raw earn up to Sh60 which is a tenth of Sh600 that the same mangoes are likely to fetch when dried.
How to dry fruits
James Muchoki, a Mango farmer in Chuka, Meru who sell his dried mangoes to Azuri Health Limited explains that no much resource is needed to dry fruits. ‘’ I manually slice my mangoes and dry them on a mat for 2-3 days to attain standards needed by my clients,’’ explained Muchoki. Mercy Nga’ng’a of Azuri Health on the other hand recommend the use of solar, saying that it is cheap and more effective. ‘’ a farmer incurs a one off expense of purchasing the solar which dry fruits more faster than direct sunlight,’ she said.
Reduce wastage
This profitable value addition venture has the potential to save the Kenya up to 120,000 metric tonnes of fruits that get destroyed in Kenya every year due to poor storage facilities. According to the Fresh Produce Exporters Association of Kenya (FPEAK), more than 50 percent of 250,000 metric tonnes of fruits produced by smallholder farmers who account for 70 per cent of the country’s fruits get destroyed before reaching market.
READ ALSO: Value addition on rice
A part from Mangoes, Azuri Health is buying dried paw paws, pineapples, pumpkins and bananas from farmers across the country. The company is however buying raw bananas from farmers and dries them at its processing plant in Nairobi
For more information on how to supply fruits to this company, contact Mercy Nga’ng’a on +254722777717 or send an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

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