BEAR Machines East Africa commits US$160 million to increasing cocoa cultivation in Kenya's coastal area

KENYA – BEAR Machines East Africa (BMEA) has signed a Ksh 20billion (US$160M) memorandum of Understanding with the County authorities of Kilifi to help coconut and cashew nut farmers to transition to cocoa farming.

BEAR Machines East Africa is a decided agricultural challenge with plans to develop a 50,000-acre totally mechanized cocoa plantation and a cutting-edge Cocoa Processing facility in Kenya.

Gary Roy, CEO of BMEA stated, “A technical crew will see what number of farmers could be integrated and the way a lot land the county can provide for the mannequin farm alongside the Sabaki River in Magarini Sub-County.”

Kilifi, which has been predominantly a cashew nut, cassava and coconut farming area, was appropriate for cocoa as a result of its humid climatic situation and sandy loam soil.

The financing might be used within the introduction of high-yielding, pest and disease-resistant cocoa selection.

The agribusiness agency advertising and marketing supervisor, Antony Mugwanja, stated the corporate has since performed a feasibility examine in collaboration with Kenya Agricultural Analysis Group, which then paved the best way for the signing of the MoU.

The challenge goals to provide 1.5 million metric tons of cocoa per acre per yr within the first harvest earlier than increasing.

“We’re injecting a capital dimension of US$162 million throughout the subsequent two years. We’re bringing a excessive breed, pests, and ailments resistance selection referred to as forastero cocoa,” stated Mugwanja.

He stated a nuclear farm of 100,000 acres has been established. Later, farmers educated to undertake new expertise and agricultural practices can be introduced on board.

“We’ve additional assured them within the MoU that we will buy all of the cocoa beans grown by the farmers for sustainability,” added Mugwanja.

The corporate initiatives that the primary cocoa harvest would begin subsequent yr given the crop takes about two and a half years to mature and “if that occurs, an interim crop will give us two harvests in a yr.”

In 2020, Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Analysis (KALRO) in partnership with Bear Machines of West Africa which is a non-public firm will introduce the crop to farmers.

To help commercialization of cocoa, KALRO will provide 40,000 cocoa seedlings to Kilifi, Kwale, Taita Taveta, Lamu, Busia, Bungoma, Vihiga, Kakamega, Kisumu, Siaya, Homabay and Migori counties in 2020.