More than 500 farmers in Kuresoi South, Nakuru County have benefitted from free pyrethrum seedlings even as the County partner with processors for timely payments and extension services.
The farmers, drawn from Amalo, Keringet and Tinet wards, received over a million seedlings on Monday, a day when Governor Susan Kihika spearheaded the groundbreaking for the construction of a processing plant in Naivasha.
Agriculture Chief Officer Kibet Kurgat, who oversaw the distribution, noted that the move was aimed at increasing acreage on pyrethrum in the county, urging the farmers to diversify their crops for better returns and tap into the revival of pyrethrum farming in the country.
“We guarantee our farmers that pyrethrum will provide a sustainable source of income in addition to what we are earning from maize and other cash crops in this region,” he said.
Kurgat noted that currently, only 2, 148 acres were under pyrethrum farming in the county and hoped that the programme will go a long way in increasing it to 30, 000 acres.
Governor Susan Kihika, who earlier in the day hosted the US Ambassador Meg Whitman during the groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of Kentegra Pyrethrum Processing Factory, noted that the industry was strategically placed near the farmers.
“The agroindustry hub was a backup to the raw material production as it will create jobs for locals.
We have mobilized farmers to form cooperatives of the Pyrethrum Growers Association to ensure they reap more from the sector. This will draw most farmers in reviving the crop that they were frustrated with in the 1980s,” urging the farmers to set aside at least a half an acre.
Kihika noted that the farmers will also benefit from extension services, assuring them of collaborations with more processors for timely payment of farmers.
