When all else failed, I tried macadamia and it thrived

Mzee Kenneth Kigoro shows macadamia trees at his farm in Kiereri village, Embu West su-county. He has over 500 macadamia trees that earn him a gross profit of at least Sh1million annually. BY JOSEPH MUCHIRI/STANDARD SAMSUNG CSC

Tracing Mzee Kenneth Kigoro’s farm from the junction of Embu-Meru Highway is quite easy. Just ask for mzee wa macadamia (the nut farmer) and you are good to go. Almost all locals at Gakwegori Shopping Centre know him because he is the largest producer of macadamia nuts in the locality.

His five-acre farm located in Kiereri village, Mbeti South location, Embu West sub-county, is evergreen with macadamia trees.

The 90-year-old farmer started macadamia farming 20 years ago with just two seedlings and has gradually increased them to over 500 blossoming trees.

He says of his journey: “Macadamia farming is not for those who want to get rich overnight. It takes time to get the first harvest. So it requires patience. One must also be ready to embrace best agricultural practices. If you do not do that, you will suffer great losses,” he says.

The macadamia is a long-lived tree that begins nut production five to seven years after planting.

Kigoro says macadamia farming has given him peace of mind and enabled him to age gracefully.

Having tended his macadamia trees well, each produces between 30 and 50kgs of nuts and when prices are good, Kigoro rakes in a gross profit of more than Sh1 million annually. On good seasons he sells a kilo at Sh100.

Successful as he maybe, it has not always been this good.

Before macadamia, he had tried a number of business ventures but none brought him success and satisfaction like macademia.

“I did so many things and nothing brought good results except macadamia. I only wish I started it earlier in my life,” he says.

First, he had tried his hand in hotel business which ended up nowhere. Then he started a matatu business which was equally unsuccessful.

Kigoro also tried a hand in coffee farming, which frustrated him due to poor returns. He quit after afew years. He was also employed by Asians but he quit because of frustrations.

Then in early 1990s, one day, while coming from hospital, he decided to buy two two macadamia seedlings at the Kagaari Cooperative Society. He went and planted them and forgot about them. After five years, he started to notice that the trees were producing nuts. He was impressed by yield and the little labour required. He went ahead and bought more seddlings and planted. Since that time he has never looked back.

Boost income

His farm is now the envy of many getting visits from local aspiring farmers, agricultural officials and visitors from as far as Norway and Finland.

He sells his nuts to Jungle Nuts and other established companies which offer the best prices. On good seasons he sells the nuts at Sh100 per kilo but when it’s a low season it can ne as low as Sh30 per kilo.

However, the prices have not always been this good, he says.

When he was started, a kilogramme used to fetch Sh3.

“When the price reached Sh15 per kg we were so happy,” he says joyfully.
He says prices kept on improving with the entry of Kenya Nuts Company and Farm Nut Ltd to Sh30 and when Embu Farmers Union started a macadamia factory at Kamiu it reached Sh80. The prices dropped later on with the collapse of the factory forcing farmers to rethink their marketing strategy and form groups.

“The highest price we have ever earned is Sh120 per kg. The prices fell to as low as Sh30 and Sh50 during low seasons. Selling at such a price is a loss to a farmer. The government should come in to prevent the big variance,” he says. Even with these challenges of pricing, Kigoro still believes macadamia is a profitable venture.

He says if one has 300 trees and each tree produces 50kgs of nuts, they could make a gross of Sh1.5 million if prices are at Sh100 per kg. He, however, says attaining 50kgs per tree is not an easy task as it requires incorporating best agricultural practices. He says spacing should be 30ftX30ft and any reduction compromises the quality.

“When spacing is less than required, the branches reach other trees and prevent them from getting adequate sunlight resulting into low quality nuts,” he says.

Kigoro adds that one should apply six bags of manure per tree, something that is costly. He used to spray the crops with chemicals but stopped and now uses the smoke from leaves mixed with pepper to kill insects.

He irrigates his macadamia during dry seasons, which makes his water bill reach Sh10,000 at times.

To boost his income, he has planted bananas in the spaces between his trees, which earn him about Sh10,000 monthly.

And why does he do intercropping much as it is discouraged?

“Though agricultural officials discourage intercropping, I still do it because I don’t like having idle space in the farm. I have 200 banana trees and I use the income I get to meet my family’s needs. Income from macadamia goes to bigger projects,” he says.

Kigoro also has over 40 beehives which brings him about Sh100,000 annually.

He has planted three macadamia species: Kirinyaga 15, Kiambu 3 and Murang’a 20. His family assists him to manage the farm but he gets 10 casual workers during harvesting.