Kenyan farmers embrace avocado farming as maize farming becomes unprofitable

Farmers in Kanduyi constituency of Bungoma County have embraced avocado farming as the high cost of inputs has made maize farming unprofitable. Kanduyi constituency Agriculture Director, David Shivonji said avocado farming was introduced to farmers in the area in 2019 and has been embraced because of its cost-effectiveness and availability of the market. He said that unlike maize farming, avocado farming does not require a lot of capital to start but only requires patience for the fruit to grow. “Farmers here thought that avocado farming only does well in Central and Trans Nzoia but have come to realize that it also grows very well here in Bungoma,” said Shivonji. “In 2019, avocado seedlings were affected by drought. In 2021, the venture picked up and is doing well with at least 1000 farmers in Kanduyi supplied with avocado seedlings,” Shivonji said. The constituency agriculture director pointed out that farmers have specifically been given a variety of avocado known as Hass. He ...