[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Shipments of cherries from Chile totaled 300,230 tons in the first two months of the year, equivalent to US$ 1,543 million FOB. This represents 68% of the total value of fresh fruit exports in the period under analysis. Cherries continue to be one of the main fruits driving Chilean fruit exports so far this year. This is revealed by the...
Warehousing Receipt System Legislation to Reduce Post-harvest Losses in Kenya
The Warehouse Receipt System Bill no. 10 has been in the Kenya parliament since 2017 but if passed in 2018, it will create a more valuable system of cold room certifications for farmers to reduce post-harvest losses. The law was last mentioned in the National Assembly on February 21, 2018 under a standing order. Its gist is to help make...
Kenya Potato Value Chain Gets a Lift Off from the Irish Government
The sale of Irish potatoes from the country is set to improve in coming months following the launch of a program by Kenya and Ireland. The project focuses its initial roll out on Nyandarua in the north-western part of Central Province. Announcing the partnership, the Irish government’s representatives in partnership with Kenya’s agricultural docket officials confirmed a holistic program involving...
Kenya’s agricultural rankings spurred by increased training
Two recent developments have shown improvements in Kenya’s agricultural sector due to the training of students who go on to make a difference at the production and value chain levels. The first one of the initiatives has been the Farmer Field School (FFS), a program that major universities initiated in 2017 to offer one-on-one training in farms. According to the...
Kenya Steps off Pesticide Road Courtesy of EU grant to Fight Armyworm Naturally
Kenya farmers will from February 22, 2018 combat the armyworm threat on their maize fields through organic methods courtesy of a grant from the European Union (EU). The funds will allow family growers to reduce dependence on pesticides and hence improve the quality of their subsistence crops and fresh produce exports. The KSH870 million ($8.7 million) kitty will oversee the...
Kenya Roses Steal the Show in the Land Down Under
Kenya flowers have contributed more than three-quarters of the total Valentine’s Day’s supplies in Australia this February. According to the country’s ABC network, of the 10.5 million cut roses that showed up February 13, 6.46 million were Kenya imports. The figure illustrates a rise by 1.25 million stems in comparison with the similar postings in the love festive season of...
Kenya Narrows Down 5 Fresh Produce to Tip its Exports Value Overseas
The five top agricultural exports from Kenya could gain more than 20 percent value addition if the government carries out a new export-boosting plan. The agricultural principal secretary, Chris Kiptoo, highlighted tea, alongside coffee, flowers, pyrethrum and horticultural produce, as the key to generating more income. He was speaking during the launching of the National Export Development & Promotion Strategy,...
Kenya Seeks Diversification To Really Export All Kinds of Produce
The Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture in Kenya, Willy Bett, spoke November 15 on a need to diversify Kenya’s fresh produce and the animal product exports sector. The minister touted the need to include food crops to the already highly successful horticultural produce like flowers, tea, fresh vegetables and fruits. This will help the country surmount the challenge of falling demand...
Training Workshop for Agriculturalists Takes Place in Naivasha
More often than not, agricultural conferences tend to focus on issues such as export, yields, crop husbandry and crop protection, but if a several-week long Naivasha conference that culminated on June 13, 2017 is anything to go by, there is more than meets the eye as the focus of the training was passing on communication skills to farmers. Reaching out...
Research Shows that Herbs in Kenya Can Curtail Cancer Progress
In April this year, botanists ascertained that at least twenty herbs in Kenya are possible inhibitors to many forms of cancer. According to the researchers, there are now a number of barks from herbal trees that have upgraded from being traditional medicine to possible modern medicine. The same applies to fruits like tamarind and leaves from most other plants....