Where macadamia nuts are all the rage

About a decade ago, Githure in Kirinyaga County was a sleepy hamlet with residents engaging in all manner of subsistence farming.

Some residents also grew macadamia on small-scale because the nuts had no viable market.

But things have now changed for the better as macadamia dwarfs other crops, thanks to the money it is putting money in farmers’ pockets following the setting up of a processing factory named Limbua.

The firm has offered ready market to farmers effectively doing away with brokers who initially fleeced farmers.

Peter Wangara, a partner at Limbua Group, says it has been a long journey for the processing plant that exports the nuts to the European Union.

“We started first with research. We partnered with Egerton University’s Department of Crops, Horticulture and Soils and Kenya Organic Agriculture Network in 2010 and researched on macadamia farming in the region,” he offers, noting his partner in the business is Matti Spiecker.

The research focused on the quality of macadamia, climatic conditions and pests and diseases.

The farmers were then trained on how to boost quality, curb pests and diseases and the requisite standards they must meet for the export market.

“It was necessary because many farmers were over using fertiliser and pesticides to grow the nuts yet we wanted the crops grow organically,” he says. The farmers were then offered certified seedlings and were guaranteed market if they fully complied with organic farming.

“We deal with some 5,000 farmers mainly spread in Githure and Kianyaga in Kirinyaga County. Some of the farmers are also in Embu County. We started with eight farmers who bought into our dream. We are now able to trace the farmers’ produce for accountability as we buy the produce at Sh100 per kilo,” he says, adding that macadamia is tolerant to dry conditions, therefore, does well in dry areas of the county.

Initially, the farmers were producing 1,000kg annually, but Wangara says good husbandry has seen yields triple to over 3,000kg of nuts per farmer.

Using their drying, cracking, weighing and packaging machines, they process the nuts by removing the shells, drying and packaging to meet international standards

To grow the macadamia nuts organically, farmers use mulch to protect the soil and keep weeds at bay and shield the plant against extreme temperatures.

READY MARKET

They further use chemical-free fertiliser that are inexpensive and don’t leave residue. Charity Wanjiru, a field officer at Limbua Group, explains that once harvested, macadamia nuts must be husked within 24 hours and kept in a well-ventilated place to prevent deterioration due to heat, which makes them mouldy and even leads to germination.

When the nuts are received at the factory, the weighing machine connected to a traceability system captures the readings.

The nuts are then sorted, with the immature ones, those that are mouldy being done away with.

“A farmer is then given a report of what quantity was rejected and for what reason,” explains Charity. “The nuts are then cleaned and placed in Cold Room 1 where moisture is removed from the shell.”

In the second cold room, the moisture content is lowered from around 250C to below 100C in three to four days and later, they are taken for hot drying, where they stay for 7-10 days until the moisture level falls to 2 per cent.

Once this is done, the nuts are then offloaded for cracking manually per crate, with each having a code with farmer’s profile, for traceability.

They are then graded depending on whether the kernels meet the export standards or not.

“The top quality ones should be 18 millimetres and above in diameter. Grade 2 nuts have a radius of between 12.5-16mm while grade 3 have a radius of between 10mm to 12.5 with the last category consisting of broken nuts. Those that don’t meet the standards are sold locally to be used as ingredients in manufacture of cosmetics,” says Charity, adding good quality ones are processed and exported to Germany.

Moses Muraguri and Gladys Wanjiku, residents of Githure, are among those contracted by Limbua to grow the nuts. They farm one an acre each.

“Macadamia nuts are profitable because we earn at least Sh300,000 a year, which is guaranteed once you deliver your produce. From the money I have been able to take my children comfortably to school,” says Muraguri.

The two note farming of the crop has spread among small farmers because of the ready market.

Timon Kipkemboi, an agronomist and a nursery and research expert, says one great challenge in macadamia farming occurs during grafting where there is a fungus attack especially during cold season, but there are fungicide to eliminate diseases.

The other main challenge is cutworm attack during the dry season.

Macadamia is used in making butter, cooking oil and cosmetic products such as soaps and shampoos.

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Export of raw nuts banned

Section 43 of the AFA Act prohibits export of raw nuts.

The regulation states: “A person shall not export raw cashewnuts, pyrethrum, bixa, macadamia or any other agricultural product as may be prescribed, except with the written authority of the Cabinet Secretary.”

The regulation was aimed at empowering local processors, creating jobs and improving farmers’ earnings