KENYA – Kenya has introduced a locally developed dragon fruit variety designed to combat food insecurity and adapt to worsening drought conditions, positioning the crop as a high-value alternative for farmers in arid and semi-arid regions. The Kika1 variety, developed by Antony Kinoti at Gravity Farm in Kathuura, Meru County, was officially unveiled by the Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service, with Kephis chairman Joseph Eruaki presenting the Certificate of Grant of Plant Breeders’ Rights. For Kenyan farmers, dragon fruit offers a compelling value proposition. The plant thrives in tropical temperatures between 21 and 30 degrees Celsius with annual rainfall of 500 to 1,500 millimeters, making it well-suited to the country’s drylands. In Vietnam, the world’s largest dragon fruit producer, the crop generates approximately US$1 billion (KSh129 billion) in exports annually. Stakeholders in Kenya note that parts of the country have climatic conditions comparable to Vietnam, ...