Sweet Pay for Kenyan Avocado Farmers in 2020

Avocado, the fruit that was a few years ago left to fall off trees and rot away as dogs celebrated the obvious delicacy, has now risen to be a cash crop more important than tea and coffee. Last year, Kenya earned Ksh15 Billion from the export of avocado. Earnest Muthomi, the CEO of the Kenya Avocado Association, observes that the country is set to earn more this year.  

This year, the avocado farmers who sold their produce through Kakuzi Company were paid Sh48 per fruit. The company also issued bonus payments of Sh88 million to about 2,000 farmers during a recent ceremony presided over by the Murang’a Governor Mwangi Wa Iria.  

The prospects of avocado farming business in Kenya have seen accelerated efforts by various stake holder organizations to regulate the sector, protect the Kenyan farmer and increase production and fruit quality.

The Murang’a CEC for Agriculture, Albert Mwaniki  during issuing of bonus to avocado farmers at Kakuzi Company Ltd grounds, displays a quality avocado that farmers are required to produce on  Friday December 6, 2019.
Photo by Bernard Munyao/KNA.

The Kenya Avocado Association is currently pushing for an extension of the list of pesticides that its members can use to protect the crop. The chairman of the association said that the farmers are currently not using any chemicals for fear that their avocados would be rejected by international buyers. The extension of the approved list of pesticides will not only help the farmer to realize more yields of a higher quality but will also ensure that the fruits are safe and not rejected in the market.

In Murang’a County, the government is in the process of drafting a bill seeking to make law several regulations that will protect the avocado farmers in the county and the avocado farming industry at large.

“The Bill, which is being prepared by stakeholders in the avocado sector, will define the harvesting dates for the fruits and [will provide for] creation of an avocado protection wing that will penalize and even impose a ban to markets and exporters who harvest the immature fruits thus negatively affecting the market for the farmers,” said Murang’a County Governor.

The Bill, once it becomes law, will also force all interested buyers to purchase avocados based on grading instead of the current situation where the fruits are bought at an average price. This will encourage and reward avocado farmers who focus on producing quality, high grade fruits.

During the bonus awarding ceremony at Kakuzi, it was noted that the Kenyan avocado production in Kenya has increased and the country recently overtook South Africa in sales volume in the international market. But even with the increased production, Kenya can only feed 6% of the world market.

The Kenyan avocado farmer is set to benefit a great deal from this expanding global market. Invest in avocado farming: it is a sure way to earn stress-free income over many years. You can start by having this copy of the comprehensive guide for avocado farming. Request for your copy here.