Pests, low returns diminish cotton industry in Embu county

Paul Korim at his farm in Serwok village in Salawa Baringo County. He is among the three only remaining cotton farmers in Kerio valley after more than a thousand farmers quit the farming due to poor prices. PHOTO: KIPSANG JOSEPH

EMBU: For Njue Mungai, cotton farming evokes bittersweet memories of years gone by, when he had to toil for months with no assurance of good returns.

The 50-year-old farmer from Nthawa in Mbeere North sub-county recounts that despite the poor earnings from cotton, he looked forward to payments since they had no other cash crops.

"Mbeere is dry and the only cash crop we had then was cotton. It was not lucrative like coffee or tea that our cousins in upper parts of Embu grew. But our parents still relied on it to educate and bring us up," narrates Mungai.

He says since the early 2000s, farmers started ditching the crop due to attacks by diseases and pests.

Mary Ndwiga from Makima in Mbeere South is another farmer who has abandoned cotton farming citing the poor returns.

Though cotton farming was the major cash crop in the area for many years, Ms Ndigwa decided three years ago to replace the cotton she had always grown with millet and green grams.

"With the two crops, I cannot sleep hungry and I can sell the surplus to get money to meet my other needs. Other farmers have opted for miraa as an alternative crop. After disappointments for many years, we no longer see the motivation to farm cotton," she says.

She added that despite Makima producing lots of cotton a decade ago, the last few years have seen fewer buyers for their produce.

Nthawa MCA Ngari Makenge, who in 2006 led cotton farmers in Siakago to revive a ginnery, said due to low production, they are unable to get adequate raw materials.