Pixie fruit is lucrative for Kenyan growers

Pixie fruit is a fleshy, easy to peel and highly nutritious citrus variety. The cultivation is gaining popularity in Kenya and the market extends to the eastern coastal area such as Machakos, Kitui and Voi. The yellow-orange fruit is often confused with an ordinary orange, but for Justus Kimeu, a large-scale grower of pixie fruit in Makueni, the rare fruits are more profitable. "Pixie does very well in arid and semi-arid areas. In addition, the prices per kilo of pixie fruit are three times higher than for oranges. For oranges you pay Ksh50 per kilo, for pixie fruit Ksh150, making it a very profitable business ," Kimeu tells Kenyans.co.ke. Kimeu has 6.5 hectares on which he grows pixie fruit, mandarin and native plants. Pixie is the most ...