Innovations that will change the way we grow food

Ever thought of a tiny greenhouse structure that could fit in any balcony space?

Innovators at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKuat) are designing one such structure measuring just about one by one meters, perfect for a kitchen garden for high value crops.

It is one in many low cost as well as low input technologies that the innovators are designing for small scale farmers.

Keen on tackling challenges of climate change, food security as well as scarcity of land, the innovators, led by Prof Urbanus Mutwiwa, an associate professor of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering at the research institution are working on innovationsthat will also eliminate use of farm chemicals to tackle the challenge of lifestyle complications.

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Here are some innovations that the researchers are working on with funding from ai (Africa Innovation) Japan.

Kadogo greenhouse

Greenhouse farming has been considered an expensive venture and a reserve for a few. A used 16 by 30 meter greenhouse on a local online store that sells used items costs Sh460, 000. A 30 by 16 meter system of greenhouses that the seller describes to have been used for two years was selling at a whooping Sh1.5 million on the same store.

This is too high for a small scale farmer, according to Prof Mutwiwa. He explains the cost of managing a greenhouse is equally high, a situation that discourages such farmers from using greenhouses.

 “At the moment, not everyone can afford a greenhouse. On top of the price, farmers incur even more costs on installing the structure and on spraying,” says Prof Mutwiwa.

According to the JKuat researcher, up to two thirds of input in a greenhouse goes to spraying alone while a sixth of the purchase price is spent on the installation of the structure at the farm.

To fill the gap, the researchers have developed a greenhouse structure that will eliminate additional costs incurred by farmers, such as those on spraying.

Dubbed ‘Kadogo greenhouse’, the structure has special nets that prevent pests from entering the greenhouse both physically by blocking the insects and optically by blinding them. The greenhouse also has a special covering film designed to block UV rays to further blind insects and pests.

Additionally, the system allows for intercropping with aromatic herbs that further drive insects away.

All these characteristics, according to the researcher, eliminate the need to use pesticides which pose health challenges to consumers of vegetables.

Kelvin Ombati, a research assistant also working on the project says the greenhouse is also suited for novices in farming.

“The biggest disappointment in greenhouses is the losses people incur after spending a lot of money purchasing the structure. But with a smaller greenhouse that isn’t as costly, a farmer can afford to make mistakes,” says Ombati.

The researchers say Kadogo greenhouse will cost less than Sh.100, 000.

Agricultural waste water purifier

Two JKuat students are working on a low-cost irrigation, drainage and agricultural waste water treatment system that will see farmers recycle irrigation water and avoid wastage at the farm.

The system is complete with a dam liner and a gutter where water from the growth medium is collected and treated to be re-used. Banana peels, which the researchers describe as rich in cleansing chemicals are used to purify the water. The peels are used alongside charcoal and pumice, a type of porous rock.

The system that uses cocopeat as growth medium is also aimed to improve soilless farming. Silver mulching paper is used to blind thrips from destroying crops that are propagated in the dam liners.

The system, according to Irene Wanjiru and Florence Nduku, the brains behind the project, aims to address water shortage as well as treat soil borne diseases in propagation of crops.

Solar greenhouse drier

Driers are handy in addressing post-harvest losses during glut season. Dried products have a longer shelf life and give farmers a stronger grip on the market prices when they harvest more than what they can readily find market for.

But what people don’t know yet is whether the UV radiations, important in the drying process have any negative effects on the dried products, according to two JKuat students.

Andrew Tongi and Scholastica Ndinda, both researchers at the university’s Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering department are working on a project that will investigate effects of UV radiations in the drying of crops.

There are two experiments in which the students are using kales and spinach to observe the drying process.  In one of the experiments, the students are allowing UV radiations while in the other one, the radiations are totally blocked. Products of the two drying processes will be assessed at the end of the experiments for differences in their nutritional as well as physical properties.

According to Prof Mutwiwa, value addition should do little to alter the original crop.

“In value addition, people buy products that are as close to the original product as possible in terms of colour and even the nutritional component. It is possible that solar drying alters some qualities such as colour of the dried crop,” says Prof Mutwiwa.

And Tongi says the project aims to manipulate the UV rays allowed in the drying process to help design driers that will minimize damage to the dried crops.

“We hope to find out the exact amount of UV radiations that crops need to be exposed to during the drying process to prevent overexposure to the rays which may be harmful,” says Tongi.

Brick energy from agricultural waste

Two JKuat students are making briquettes using agricultural waste to provide an alternative to charcoal.

Dennis Awori and Lagat Abraham say alternative energy will help solve deforestation even as the government moves to control logging.

“Our project will boost the fight against logging and provide alternative sources of energy. Overreliance on charcoal is a threat to the environment,” says Awori.

The students are using hyacinth and other fibrous agricultural waste which is carbonized in low oxygen in a kiln at the university. Paper pulp is then added to the carbonized substance to act as a binder and then comprised and dried. In the absence of paper pulp, clay may also be used as a binder.

Zero energy coolers

Invention of coolers is by far the best way to deal with post-harvest losses in perishable farm produce.

This solution, however, is a reserve of a few farmers who can afford high energy consuming and top refrigeration techniques, according to Prof Mutwiwa.

“The coolers we have on the market are out of reach for most farmers pricewise. Most of them are powered by electricity yet many small scale farmers who don’t have electricity in their homes,” says the JKuat don.

To fill the gap, Prof Mutwiwa has been leading a team of researchers at the university to design a cooler that eliminates use of electricity.

Dubbed ‘zero energy cooler’, the structure uses the principle of evaporation and transportation to cool agricultural produce.

A metal mesh cage is constructed and filled with pumice stones which are soaked with water using a drip pipe that runs on the top of the structure. When warm air blows over the stones, cool air is released into the structure where the produce is stored. It is this cool air that carries away the respiratory heat produced by the produce in the structure, creating a cooling effect on the produce.

The other distinguishing feature of the zero-energy cooler are crops strategically planted on the top of the structure. These plants loose heat to the environment through transportation.

Additionally, a solar is installed at the back of the structure to power a small pump and circulate water within the structure and tanks.

The researchers explain that pumice stones are able to hold water for a long time.

“Most coolers on the market use charcoal which doesn’t last long. When this happens, the whole structure has to be pulled down to have the charcoal replaced,” says Ombati, a research assistant working on the project.