This archive report was first published on 5 January 2022.
January 5, 2022 - In Kenya's central highlands, Martin Gitau has found success with his mid-sized farm, cultivating summer flowers since 2019.
Gitau's half-acre farm in Nyandarua, about 130 kilometers northwest of Nairobi, has become a profitable venture, thanks to a ready market and high demand for the crop.
"Growing of arabicum is a profitable venture because it takes three months to mature and has a ready market," Gitau said.
He revealed that he grows the crop twice a year, maintaining soil fertility and earning an average profit of about 100,000 shillings (around 880 U.S. dollars) from every harvest.
Summer flowers are typically grown only in summer in northern European countries, but can be cultivated throughout the year in Kenya due to abundant sunshine.
Gitau is part of a group of 100 small-scale farmers who sell their harvests to an export-oriented company for onward sales.
According to Benjamin Tito, Head of the Directorate of Horticulture, Kenya's flower exports between January and November 2021 reached 191.8 million kilograms, a significant increase from 132.9 million kilograms in the same period in 2020.
Revenues for Kenya's flower exports for the first 11 months of 2021 were approximately 101 billion shillings.
