Benson Okome, 38, of Ichinga Village in Mumias, Kakamega County, has shifted from traditional sugar cane farming to collecting and selling overgrown grass and cane leaves from the abandoned Mumias Sugar Company estate.
Okome and others like Fredrick Waswa now gather foliage from the factory’s former nucleus farm, where sugar cane once thrived. The leaves, previously discarded, have become valuable livestock feed, with sellers reporting steady demand from farmers along the Mumias-Bungoma road.
"I used to grow sugar cane on my half-acre and earned over Sh20,000 per harvest," Okome said. "But after 2016, I switched to maize and subsistence crops. The income isn’t enough, so I turned to this venture." He sells mixed fodder bundles for Sh50 to Sh150, depending on quality.
Waswa, who also collects leaves from surrounding estates, travels to distant farms to source material. "A motorbike can’t carry much, so I make multiple trips," he explained. Both men face seasonal challenges, as dry weather reduces leaf availability while demand remains constant.
