Small farmer emerges top in national competition

Small scale farm gearing towards commercialisation winner Lucy Muthoni Kuria and her husband Mr Michel Kuria receive a trophy from President Uhuru Kenyatta. PHOTO | COURTESY

What you need to know:

  • The nationwide farmers’ competition is an annual event mainly sponsored by Elgon Kenya Ltd in partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture.
  • Elgon Kenya chief executive Bimal Kantaria said that winners of the farmers’ award enjoy a number of benefits, beyond the trophies and the certificates.
  • While drought which hit several parts of the country affected agricultural production considerably, more farmers submitted entries into the competition this year.
  • The judges look at the agribusiness aspects of a farming venture, farm records, and the environment under which the farming is done, among other things, such as technology.

Lucy Muthoni, the proprietor of Lucy Park Farm, which specialises in growing horticultural crops such as lettuce, broccoli, tomatoes, capsicum and a Chinese bean variety known as shing shing is the country’s top farmer.

Lucy, a farmer from Gatundu in Kiambu County, was crowned the overall winner of this year’s National Farmers Award Scheme after emerging tops in the small-scale farm gearing towards commercialisation category.

President Uhuru Kenyatta presented to her the award on Wednesday during the Nairobi International Trade Fair at Jamhuri Show Ground in Nairobi.

The nationwide farmers’ competition is an annual event mainly sponsored by Elgon Kenya Ltd in partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture.

The scheme started five years ago to reward the best farmer as it seeks to improve the adoption of new farming technologies to enhance food security and incomes.

Lucy grows the crops inside three greenhouses – for export – besides also keeping a variety of fish.

Elgon Kenya chief executive Bimal Kantaria said that winners of the farmers’ award enjoy a number of benefits, beyond the trophies and the certificates.

“The farmers are given farm inputs from our company to boost their production. They also become trainers of farmers a job which they do at a fee.”

Nelson Maina, Elgon Kenya’s Head of Communication and Marketing, explained that when a farmer registers in the competition, the company retains their contact in their database so that they can reach them in case of outbreak of a disease.

BOOSTING FOOD SECURITY

“We alert farmers in case of an outbreak of diseases and pests and inform them of possible remedies such as pesticides for addressing the outbreaks. We also give those in our database some discounts when buying our products,” Maina said.

Winners of different categories in the farmers awards scheme.

While drought which hit several parts of the country affected agricultural production considerably, more farmers submitted entries into the competition this year.

“In the entry we encourage farmers to include particular challenges they are facing in their daily activities through which we are able to offer them the right advice,” Maina explained, adding that the company has employed a team of experts to respond to farmers’ questions via social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter.

The judgement and inspections of the farms are conducted by agricultural experts from the Ministry of Agriculture. The judges look at the agribusiness aspects of a farming venture, farm records, and the environment under which the farming is done, among other things, such as technology.

President Kenyatta lauded initiatives aimed at boosting food security and said the government has constituted a team of experts and provided Sh300 million towards containing the fall army worms, which have ravaged hundreds of acres of maize in parts of Western, Kilifi, Rift Valley and Central Kenya.

Horticulture is the fastest growing agricultural industry in the country earning Sh100 billion in foreign exchange, besides employing over six million Kenyans directly and indirectly.