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Agriculture as an investment in Kenya.
Ceinz
#11 Posted : Monday, February 14, 2011 10:44:55 PM
Rank: Veteran

Joined: 5/7/2009
Posts: 1,032
Location: Sea of Transquility
story teller wrote:
Ceinz wrote:
The other day in KBC biz show I saw some guys in Nyanza had replicated a commercial flower plant project from ideas borrowed in a Naivasha farm and it appears they are picking up well. Didn't get the details of species planted, acreage etc. Anyone with ideas?..



It might be the same guy from the article below..

Great Opportunity in Nyanza -horticulture is blooming


Thanks Story teller, they are the guys. Thank you All for ur contributions, Wazuans we need more sharing, am sure we got many farmers amongst us.
“small step for man”
Wendz
#12 Posted : Tuesday, February 15, 2011 10:21:12 AM
Rank: Elder

Joined: 6/19/2008
Posts: 4,268
brayokasa4 wrote:
Being a greenhouse farmer , let me throw in my 2cents.
Having observed the market keenly, I have noticed that a lot of people plant tomatoes in greenhouses more than any other vegetable. I too made the same mistake and started with tomatoes. However the cost of production is high and when you go with your tomatoes to the market, its mostly flooded. I have been doing some research and got to know that things like coriander (dania) , okra, garlic, capsicum, green pepper (pilipili hoho) ,Red Bombay Onion, Rosemary, french beans,can do very well in greenhouses and fetch very good prices .I am using Amiran Farmers Kit Greenhouses as a model here. The crops mentioned above are mostly unexploited by farmers. Saying that greenhouse farming is profitable or not is relative. As we know marketing is not an art many have perfected. I have personally gone to many high end hotels and restaurants and asked them what they want me to plant for them and they told me , and thats what I plant. i have had the two greenhouses in Loitokitok (230km from Nairobi) and the returns so far have been good. If handled correctly , you will be smiling all the way to the bank.


Very informative and practical! Thanks for sharing.
Chaka
#13 Posted : Tuesday, February 15, 2011 10:50:30 AM
Rank: Elder

Joined: 2/16/2007
Posts: 2,114
@brayokasa4,
What kind of soil is at loitokitok and where do you get water from?
bwenyenye
#14 Posted : Tuesday, February 15, 2011 4:30:37 PM
Rank: Elder

Joined: 5/24/2007
Posts: 1,805
popat wrote:
I always ask myself how many people eat rabbits?The restaurant i frequent have no menu featuring rabbit meat as a delicacy.Someone would argue this is a preserve of the five-star hotels,then the question begs how many patrons in these few hotels partake to this delicacy.Still numbers don't add up.May be the international markets.But that is maybe.Do i miss something! javascript:insertsmiley('d'oh!%20','/Images/Emoticons/eusa_doh.gif')



@ Popat,
I have seen a guy who made rabbit sales of over KShs 1M in a year. I think what we are lacking is proper market info as far as rabbit rearing goes. Lakini biashara ipo.
I Think Therefore I Am
brayokasa4
#15 Posted : Tuesday, February 15, 2011 8:46:15 PM
Rank: New-farer

Joined: 10/13/2010
Posts: 95
Location: Nairobi
Chaka wrote:
@brayokasa4,
What kind of soil is at loitokitok and where do you get water from?


We have sandy loam soil. I have drilled a borehole on site which has a capacity of 30,000 liters of water a day, though I don't need all that water so I sell it to other farmers.
By the way, when doing greenhouse farming ,put a lot of dried cow dung, not that green dung , but the one which has dried until it looks powdery. That will save you a lot of $$$$ in fertilizers. It really works , trust me.
If you think you can, and if you think you can't , either way, you are right!
Mercie
#16 Posted : Wednesday, February 16, 2011 8:24:40 PM
Rank: Member

Joined: 2/4/2009
Posts: 42
brayokasa4 wrote:
Being a greenhouse farmer , let me throw in my 2cents.
Having observed the market keenly, I have noticed that a lot of people plant tomatoes in greenhouses more than any other vegetable. I too made the same mistake and started with tomatoes. However the cost of production is high and when you go with your tomatoes to the market, its mostly flooded. I have been doing some research and got to know that things like coriander (dania) , okra, garlic, capsicum, green pepper (pilipili hoho) ,Red Bombay Onion, Rosemary, french beans,can do very well in greenhouses and fetch very good prices .I am using Amiran Farmers Kit Greenhouses as a model here. The crops mentioned above are mostly unexploited by farmers. Saying that greenhouse farming is profitable or not is relative. As we know marketing is not an art many have perfected. I have personally gone to many high end hotels and restaurants and asked them what they want me to plant for them and they told me , and thats what I plant. i have had the two greenhouses in Loitokitok (230km from Nairobi) and the returns so far have been good. If handled correctly , you will be smiling all the way to the bank.

Thanks a lot for sharing! How much would one require as capital for a start?
Go borrow vessels!
brayokasa4
#17 Posted : Friday, February 18, 2011 5:31:24 PM
Rank: New-farer

Joined: 10/13/2010
Posts: 95
Location: Nairobi
Mercie wrote:
brayokasa4 wrote:
Being a greenhouse farmer , let me throw in my 2cents.
Having observed the market keenly, I have noticed that a lot of people plant tomatoes in greenhouses more than any other vegetable. I too made the same mistake and started with tomatoes. However the cost of production is high and when you go with your tomatoes to the market, its mostly flooded. I have been doing some research and got to know that things like coriander (dania) , okra, garlic, capsicum, green pepper (pilipili hoho) ,Red Bombay Onion, Rosemary, french beans,can do very well in greenhouses and fetch very good prices .I am using Amiran Farmers Kit Greenhouses as a model here. The crops mentioned above are mostly unexploited by farmers. Saying that greenhouse farming is profitable or not is relative. As we know marketing is not an art many have perfected. I have personally gone to many high end hotels and restaurants and asked them what they want me to plant for them and they told me , and thats what I plant. i have had the two greenhouses in Loitokitok (230km from Nairobi) and the returns so far have been good. If handled correctly , you will be smiling all the way to the bank.

Thanks a lot for sharing! How much would one require as capital for a start?

For one greenhouse, inclusive of fertilizers, seeds,chemicals ,drip system, protective clothing, around 130k .But you can opt to buy these things separately from different supliers. Like buy the net from Thika, drip system from Kari, etc. A bit tricky though if you dont know what exactly u r doing.
If you think you can, and if you think you can't , either way, you are right!
X13united
#18 Posted : Friday, February 18, 2011 6:28:28 PM
Rank: Member

Joined: 8/26/2010
Posts: 124
Questions.
1. What size of the green house would go for the 130k gross total.
2. Preempting that the soil test will be done-do you take samples to them or do they get to the site.- whats the cost?
kimiri
#19 Posted : Monday, February 21, 2011 5:58:25 PM
Rank: Member

Joined: 3/12/2008
Posts: 215
@ Ceinz. The most suitable investments depend on location due to variability of factors such as demand, climate, physical, organisational and institutional infrastructure etc. across regions. For instance, with 1-2 acres of land in areas near Nairobi, activities such as horticulture, commercial poultry (both layers and broilers production) and dairy can pay quite handsomely. A major challenge for many of our farmers is the seasonal variation in output prices as our agriculture is largely rain fed. Ways to deal with this include technologies such as irrigation (in case of horticulture) and feed preservation (hay, silage etc) in case of livestock activities such as dairy. For famers who are able to guarantee supply, they can enter into contracts with buyers so as to mitigate the adverse effects of poor prices during pick production seasons. Note that the buyer also befits because he is assured of supply when products get scarce.
Ceinz
#20 Posted : Monday, February 21, 2011 8:41:02 PM
Rank: Veteran

Joined: 5/7/2009
Posts: 1,032
Location: Sea of Transquility
Good observation, thanks Kimiri.
“small step for man”
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