Five Crops That Can Make You Rich In 2020

While agribusiness in Kenya is on a fast growth, the following crops have an even greater advantage in 2020:

1. Passion fruit

If you are looking for a high-value crop that can produce an income in the first year, take a look at passion fruit farming. Passion fruit farming has nearly unlimited advantages from extended life span exceeding three years after establishment to ability to intercrop.

While the capital needed to start a good size of passion fruit farm is not very low, the benefits and profit are worth every investment you make. Demand for passion fruits has continued to rise in 2020, especially with the coming of Covid 19 which has made people want to eat more healthy foods, moreso fruits.

In the wake of health awareness, companies like Coca-cola, Afia juices and Del-Monte are also doing more in fruit juice production. Some of them are already sourcing various fruits from farmers to tap fresh fruits processing segments. Despite all the interest by fresh drink processors, the supply of this fruit has been low this year. This presents an opportunity for you as a farmer.

The crop produces high yields under proper care, for instance, a yield of 50,000kg of passion fruit per hectare has been reported in Kenya. The average price of one kilo of passion fruits is Sh50 in various market centres in the country. However, you can still sell at a higher price through direct marketing. From one hectare, it’s possible to earn over Sh2,000,000; an earning that exceeds many other farming enterprises.

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Furthermore, the maturity and ripening of the fruits, does not happen at the same time; some take three days others one week while others two weeks. This is an advantage, as it will allow you to harvest weekly, and have time to market the produce. Starting as a small grower you will find lots of eager buyers at your neighbourhoods and supermarkets.

2. Strawberries

The demand for strawberries is bursting at the seams and the supply is low. This is because of the strawberry flavour that is used in the production of yoghurt, ice-creams, jams and in perfumes. Companies that use these fruits in Kenya are relying on imports. This is sufficient justification why strawberry farming is and will remain lucrative agribusiness in the years to come. Strawberries can grow in almost every part of our country provided there is constant water supply and stable temperature.

A one eighth of an acre would be adequate for a beginner but if you are in an urban setting you can invest in a few containers (which you can then put in your backyard) and start farming. It takes about 70 days for the crop to mature and produce the first fruits. But because the fruits are highly perishable (stays fresh for four to five days after harvesting), it is advisable to start looking for market early enough to avoid incurring losses.

An eighth piece of land can produce between 30kg and 50kg of strawberries per week and each kilo goes for about Sh200 at the current wholesale market price. Now assuming your small farm produces 50Kgs per week then that means you can make Sh40,000 per month using only a small portion of your land.

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Once you plant them, 70 days down the line you will get your first harvest. This will continue for up to three years with two to three harvesting seasons every year. Like any other business with attractive returns, strawberry farming in Kenya requires capital. Chandler is the most popular variety. Strawberries are runners, so once you plant, you do not need to buy other seedlings as you can propagate them by removing the splits from the parent plant.

You don’t have to be an agriculture expert to succeed in strawberry farming. All you need to do is find a good piece of land. Then you need to source for the right seedlings – and this is where you need to contact Richfarm Kenya on 0724698357 for assistance. Alternatively, you can talk to other successful farmers in your area for assistance in sourcing for the right variety.

3. Mushrooms

Mushroom production of late has captured the attention of the Kenya’s farming community with most mushroom farmers boasting amazing profits. Mushroom are land and rainfall independent hence making them the better option for those looking to maximise revenue from their land usage. For those without space to garden, growing mushrooms for profit can produce a great return in a small space.

Exotic mushrooms, such as oyster and shiitake, make sense, as they can be grown indoors without soil. They only require a house and your attention. Mud thatched houses can create the right climate for mushroom growing. The demand in Kenya is unsatisfied with data indicating that we are only producing 500 tonnes of these mushrooms against an annual demand of 1,200 tonnes.

Mushrooms can be grown using various substrates from agricultural wastes such as cereal straws such as maize stalks, bean stalk, wheat straw Coffee pulp, coffee husks, paper waste, papyrus, water hyacinth, banana fronds etc. Cotton husks, maize cobs, banana leaves, papyrus, grass straw, paper wastes, sugarcane bagasse and hay. Spawns ‘seeds’ can be easily obtained from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture, Science and Technology (JKUAT).

Oyster mushrooms, for example, produce around 10kg per square foot of growing space in a year’s time. At the current price of Sh300 a kilo, that’s Sh300,000 worth of mushrooms from a 10’x10′ space! Exotic mushrooms do not travel well, so as a small local grower you will always have an edge over distant producers. In most supermarkets, the oyster mushrooms are also the first items to sell out.

Before, mushroom farming has been a very complicated venture requiring lots of chemistry, biology and attention. This made it a no-go-zone for the small-scale farmers. However, there are continuous seminars and workshops by JKUAT which can make you a master.

4. Onions

Although onion prices reached the lowest in 2020 with a kg selling for as low as Ksh20 at the farm gate, this is a crop that is still worth a shot at. It is not so much of a goldmine as it was in previous years but my prediction is that there is going to be an abnormal rise in onion prices very soon since so many farmers abandoned the crop when the prices went low and remained so for a long time.

Done well, 1 acre of onions should yield 20,000 kgs or more. If you sell the crop at Ksh20 per kg, your revenue will be Ksh400,000 in just 5 months. The cost of production usually goes to an average of Ksh120,000 per acre so you are still making profits. The kill will be when these prices start going up, most likely in early 2021, something that seems sure to happen. Can you imagine how much you will earn if you harvest your 20 tons when the price are at 80 per kg! That is not a far dream; the prices have many times been on such a high. 

5. Pawpaws

This is a crop that few farmers know about and that is where the opportunity lies. It is a tree that is quite resistant to dry conditions and hardy to pests and diseases. Once planted and well established, just a little care will be required from time to time.

There are various varieties of pawpaw and now we even have the dwarfs which start producing fruits from the ninth month. With a line spacing of 2 m and tree-to-tree spacing of 2m, one acre can carry 1100 trees. Each of these trees produces 40 to 50 kg of fruit every year giving you about 40 to 50 tons of fruit per acre every year. With a kg selling at an average of  sh.30, you can easily make 1.2 to 1.5 million shillings from an acre of pawpaw every year.

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The initial cost of planting an acre of pawpaw is low since each seedling can be bought at an average of 50 shillings meaning you will only need 55,000 shillings to buy seedlings for one acre. The rest is labour and a bit of fertilization. The cost would hardly exceed 100,000 shillings. 

To become successful in agribusiness, information is the most important asset. We have done our best to collect our experiences and put them in downloadable PDF guides. You can now download comprehensive farming guides of these various crops for FREE from our Resources Page. 

If you need more assistance, do not hesitate to call us directly on 0724698357 or email us on info@richfarmkenya.com