Maximising profits: How I secured fat market for my pig trade

When one thinks of a farmer in Kajiado, what comes to the mind is a red shuka-clad Maasai cattle herder.

However, the devastating drought and the shrinking land space is making livestock keeping unreliable as a source of income and more cattle keepers are thinking of other alternative sources of income.

One such farmer is George King’ori who is rearing pigs and doing value addition in Kitengela.

On his two acre farm, he rears 300 pigs and runs an abattoir that slaughters not less than 20 pigs a day.

Mr King’ori began with three pigs 7 years ago and after two years this venture proved viable as it had expanded to over 200 pigs. In 2016, he opened a modern pig abattoir.

The farm has 30 workers attending to the pig pens and the slaughter section where he charges Sh600 to slaughter a pig.

Though he looks established, the journey has not been a walk in the park.

“When I started keeping pigs in this area, neighbours started complaining. Some were complaining that the pigs were attracting rats,” recalls King’ori.

“They had no explanation on the connection of pigs and rats. They also complained a pig is a dirty animal which will interfere with the environment scent as it is a dirty animal.”

To change their mindset, he had to do an awareness campaign.

HIGHS AND LOWS

“It took me one year to change my neighbours’ misconceptions about pig keeping. I had to prove to them that you can rear clean pigs in a clean environment. Slowly, I got a few converts. Now the whole community is my market,” says King’ori.

Having been at it for a while now, King’ori says the biggest challenge with pig rearing as a commercial venture is lack of awareness on its viability. King’ori says food security and nutrition will be attained if more people embrace ventures like pig rearing.

And the returns are guaranteed for those who take the bold step and do things the right way, he says.

“Pig farming is an affordable venture which does not require a huge chunk of land. Pigs mature within six months and are ready for sale. Given that pigs give birth to between 10 to 16 piglets the first multiplication means quick cash,” he says.

For farmers who want to make an extra buck, value addition is the way to go, he points out.

He urges farmers to observe high levels of hygiene in handling pork to ensure consumers get safe pork for consumption.

“If you are dealing with raw meat, you cannot afford to gamble with health of clients. Hygiene is none negotiable. It is crucial to win the trust of your clients in any business, be reliable and consistent on better services.”

GIVE CLEAN WATER

As a wise investor, King’ori also produces his own food supplements making feeding cost cheaper.

He says a pig requires 6kgs of food and sufficient clean water in a day.

“I decided to start making my own feeds when I realised buying them was unsustainable. Given that I was doing large scale pig farming, there was need to cut on feed costs for the sake of profits. To make the feeds, I buy a range of products like rice husks while I prepare to make a rich and nutritious feed mix,’’ he adds.

For him, another hurdle is lack of reliable vaccine suppliers and a vet to attend to the pigs.

Forming a Sacco that brings together pig farmers has also been a challenge since the farmers are scattered all over and have no support from the county government compared to herders.

Nonetheless, King’ori soldiers on. To win new customers and stay in business, he has had to employ creative ways.

FUTURE PLANS?

To encourage pork consumption among locals, he sells the meat at the farm at a retail price of Sh300 per kilo.

Ten years from now?

King’ori is plans to build a pork empire where he will be training interested farmers on commercial pig rearing.

“My aim is to create a generation of pig keepers who know how to rear pigs and have embraced international best practice. By that time, I believe I will have what it takes to offer that service.’’