Experts urge urgent action over acidity levels of local soil

Soil testing helps in determining the components of the soil and uits nutritional value and value addition to the plants. [ File]

Kenyan soils require extensive reconditioning due to extensive acidity, agroecological experts now say.

 According to Rodi Kenya’s Executive Director Esther Bett, the soil acidity level in Kenya is higher than in Uganda and Tanzania.

 She said that Kenya’s soils urgently require restoration through nourishing with compost and organic prepared manure following extensive damage caused by the use of synthetic chemicals and fertilisers.

 She spoke at the launch of Rodi Kenya, a five-year strategic plan for 2026, presided over by the Deputy Director General of Prisons, Nicholas Maswai, at the organisation’s Eastern Bypass Office.

 She disclosed that research conducted years ago established that Kenyan soils were in dire need of reconditioning after they were found to be in a worse state than those of neighbouring countries that were doing well in food production.

 “Since the launch of Rodi Kenya decades ago by the late Eliud Ngunjiri, it has managed to promote agro-ecology farming, a concept that has been embraced by the Kenya Prisons and farmer groups,” said Bett. 

 Across villages, earthworms facilitate the conversion of organic waste into rich nutrients that enhance soil structure, thereby boosting food production.

 In the last five years, she said, the NGO has worked with coffee farmers in the counties of Murang’a, Nyeri, and Kiambu, where increased production has been recorded.

 She said most farmers had managed to increase their cherry production from 1.5kg to six kilos.  

“There are some who have managed to harvest between six and 10kg per tree,” she said, adding that in the tree planting programme, they will assist in planting five million trees across the country.

 Mwasai stated that since 1994, Rodi Kenya has been a pioneer in rehabilitation and restorative efforts related to prisoners and the community.

 “In many of the prisons, the Rodi Kenya family has made an impact that has helped the prisoners and the wardens,” he said.

 David Mburu, a former convict, said that during his time in prison at Nairobi West Prison, he learned a lot about organic farming, a trend he continued after his release.

 Mburu, now a leading farmer in Gatundu North in Kiambu, stated that he mobilised residents and formed groups specialising in organic produce ranging from pineapples to vegetables. 

“There is a growing number of organic farmers in Murang’a and Kiambu, a move that allows them to refer customers to any of the members who are nearby,” he said.

 Last July, AFA announced plans to ban on exports and transit of raw macadamia nuts through Kenyan ports in a move it said was aimed at protecting local farmers and promoting domestic processing.

 Dr Bruno Linyiru, AFA director general, said the ban applies to all raw macadamia nuts, both in-shell and unprocessed, whether wet or dry, regardless of their country of origin. 

“Exporters from foreign states intending to trade in raw macadamia are advised to use alternative foreign ports of exit and to refrain from routing raw macadamia produce through Kenya,” Linyiru warned

 The directive followed multiple interceptions of macadamia consignments at Kenyan border points in recent weeks.

 AFA in the statement said the move is part of the enforcement of the Crops Act, 2013, and the Crops (Nuts and Oil Crops) Regulations, 2020, which prohibit the export of raw nuts in a bid to encourage local value addition.

 “No raw macadamia nuts may be exported through or from Kenya,” Linyiru said. [Boniface Gikandi]