Kenya: New banana plant will help raise farm incomes
They will now be able to add value as one of the immediate gains from the factory that will be based at Sabasaba in Murang’a South district. The plant is scheduled to be fully operational by mid this year since most of the technical work is complete.
USAid’s community development officer Jayne Gathii, says the plant will see the value per kilogramme of raw bananas rise from Sh30 to Sh75.
Preservation of bananas will be possible, giving room for processing.
According to the Murang’a Banana Growers Association official James Kimuhu, the plant will help to increase the incomes of 432 farmers.
“We are anticipating that within two years, we will be paying dividends to our members since we will have increased returns from our market ventures,” he said.
Part of the money is being earmarked for growing genetically modified crop in Mathioya. The money will finance the growing of tissue culture varieties that mature fast, are disease-resistant, and adapting rapidly to harsh conditions. Tissue culture technology generates plant species from a single shoot.
It is estimated that Kenya has more than six million seedlings that have been planted by farmers since 2005. In the Murang’a project, 1,500 seedlings were planted and will benefit about 1,200 residents.
Source: businessdailyafrica.com
