French Beans Farming That Can Make You a Millionaire
Have you been thinking of tapping into the benefits of Kenya’s export market in the Euro and the United States?
Well, believe you me, you can start your own small venture right now and be a part of those who feed the nations.
You only need to think about planting French beans and in less than 2 months you will be thinking of exporting your first produce.
French beans grow in warm-wet parts of the country. These are areas like Thika, Murang’a, Machakos, parts of Kajiado, Uasin Gishu, Nakuru, Western Kenya and Kisumu. The soil has to be well drained and water supply should be adequate.
*Getting Started*
Don’t invest in French beans until you consult local export agents for mentorship, training and market advice.
This is a very important step because these are the institutions that will buy from you and sell the produce at the international market.
You will need to talk to them so that you can familiarize with the right kinds of crop species, chemicals and packaging methods prior to making an investment.
Examples:
*Fresh Produce Exporters Association of Kenya (Located in New Rehema House, Rhapta Road, Westlands)
*Homegrown Kenya Limited
*VegPro Kenya Limited
*Wamu Enterprises
*Everest Enterprises
*Kenya Horticultrual Exports Limited (KHE)
*Find arable land and prepare it*
An acre of land typical costs Ksh.10,000 to Ksh.20,000 to lease per year. The best land (ideally) is one that is near an international airport so the export agents can easily access your farm.
Those targeting Nairobi may want to think of areas like Murang’a, Gatundu, Kirinyaga, Mua Hills, Ngong and Ngoliba.
Lease land can also be found in places like Mwea although the soils in those areas tend to be depleted of minerals due to years and years of intensive farming.
*Find seeds and plant*
Your export agent will be able to advice you on the best seeds, fertilizers and chemicals to use.
Typically, an acre of land requires a 25Kg bag of seeds which costs Ksh.22,000 on average (1 seed per hole). Note that with irrigation French beans can be grown throughout the year.
*Basic Farming Tips*
*Land should be ploughed and furrowed before planting season
*Single rows of 30cmx15cm or double rows of 60cmx30cm are recommended
*You will require about 80 Kgs DAP and 60Kgs of CAN fertilizer per acre. NPK fertilizer may also be used on less fertile land to stimulate crop flowering.
*Pesticides like “Confidor” and “Thunder” can be used
*The harvest*
French beans take around 50 days to mature after which you can harvest them over the next 8 weeks. On average an acre piece of land can yield 4 to 6 tonnes of crop.
Note that, because these are highly perishable crops, it is important to harvest when there’s ready market.
*How much to Invest*
In order to start a fully-fledged farm (including leasing the farm, ploughing, irrigation, seeds, labour, fertilizer and chemicals) you will need to set aside a budget of at least Ksh.130,000. This cost may actually reduce with successive planting seasons.
*How much to Expect*
During the high season (September to March), you can sell a Kilogram of your produce at an average price of Ksh.100. Thus if you harvest 5 tonnes from your acre piece of land over period of 2 months then the returns would amount to Ksh.500,000.
The low season in this business lasts between April and August and prices per kilo tend to plummet to Ksh.50 on average.
*Final Word*
It’s not a must to become a full-time farmer in order to engage in this business. And you don’t need to be a landowner either.
All you need to do is get mentorship from those who understand the business of exporting products, lease a piece of land near your current place of residence, hire labourers and only visit the farm once or twice a week.
So, YES, you can actually start this as a side-hustle as you explore further options to enhance your investment strategies.
Also don`t forget to join our training on Dairy Farming.
We have created a WhatsApp group called *DAIRY FARMING TRAINING* WhatsApp Group.
In this training group, we will teach you on how you can start, grow and profit in Dairy Farming Business.
Did you know you can earn up-to Ksh.40,000 per month with 3 dairy cows?
Kenya has been identified as the highest performer in Africa when it comes to dairy farming. Breeds that are used in Kenya are high breeders which yield milk between 30 to 50 litres of milk per day with good management.
One cow can produce an average milk yield of 30 litres per day which is approximately 270 litres of milk from one cow per month.
Currently milk goes for a minimum of Ksh.30 per litre. This will give you a gross income of
3×30×30×30 = Ksh.81,000 from 3 cows in one month.
The cost of production is usually half the amount of litres per cow. The net income per month will therefore be
81,000 – 40,500 = Ksh.40,500
This Ksh.40,000 per month profit is from 3 dairy cows. What if you had 5, 10, 20 or 30 cows? What if some cows are producing more than 30 litres in a day?
Keeping cows for money has in the past been considered a thing for retirees but look at what young people are now doing with it!
Whatever your background and experience, this training will provide you with detailed information you need to know before starting your dairy farm.
By
Timothy Angwenyi
Business Consultant
Justine Nyachieo
Business Man & Mentor
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