Cassava news, recipes and more

A cassava chipper in Eastern Kenya has boosted the local economy in the Makueno country of eastern Kenya and has helped to support the local cassava industry. The portable machine which chips cassava tubers into pellets has revolutionized the way farmers operate.

Before the machine was introduced by the non-profit organization Farm Concern, farmers faced the unique challenge of preserving their harvests which usually have a very low shelf-life.  Cassava, one of the most important staple crops on the African continent, expires rapidly after harvest and usually goes off within two days after harvesting.

For many years, farmers only collected the amount of cassava which was immediately needed for food or for the market. In order to prevent the crops from going off, farmers delayed harvests by leaving many roots in the ground until there was demand. Unfortunately, this risky practice resulted in many losses as it made cassava crops vulnerable to many diseases. Many of the roots also rotted in the ground.

The cassava chipper has turned things around for many farmers as it allows them to process their whole harvest by shredding them into chips and then drying them in the sun. This simple method extends the shelf-life of cassava products from 2 days to up to 3 years. Pellets can then be cooked and used in meals, or be milled into flour. They are also suitable for livestock feed.

The small Chipper is a simple, locally assembled machine which can easily be transported on motorbikes. It includes a small generator that powers a rotating grinder, also attached to the machine. The chipper, which was provided by Farm Concern, is shared by farmers who can use it for free and are only required to pay for the fuel used by the machine.

This new way of preserving cassava has not only offered improved food security for many farmers who can now store cassava chips in case other food crop stocks are low, but has also triggered the local economy. Farmers are now more encouraged to increase their production as they’ve found a solution to prevent post-harvest losses. Thanks to the increase in cassava chip production, the local industry has also been fuelled. The dried pellets are used by both starch manufacturers and livestock feed makers whose demand for chipped cassava is steadily increasing.

Many farmers have already taken the next necessary step and have invested into purchasing their own cassava chipping machines. This has added more value to their cassava and has created market stability: the farmers know they can supply the required amounts of cassava and industrial buyers can expect a consistency in supplies. Moreover, farmers who own chipping machines have been able to lease them to their colleagues. This has resulted in the expansion of a rural enterprise built around cassava.

In order to fully benefit from these new developments, the farmers have founded an association to benefit from economies of scale of the emerging market and have launched a joint savings scheme which has developed into a local microfinance institution. The scheme has been more beneficial to many farmers as it charges lower interest rates than commercial banks and other conventional microfinance institutions.

“Through the savings scheme, we have been able to put up a social welfare system that has helped us to take care of education and medical expenses that we may not have been able to meet before, “ said Charles Kyalo, a member who in the past borrowed $120 USD from the group to pay for medical expenses for his wife. He used some of this money to register with the national health organization and now receives free medical services.

The next step for the farming community is to buy a tractor which will be used to till larger plots of lands. The group has also invested into multiplying cassava seedlings which is a major concern for the farmers in the region. As global warming is threatening other crops such as maize, beans and cowpeas, the drought-resistant cassava crop seems a viable alternative. Another project of the farmers’ group is to educate farmers how to adapt to climate change by teaching them about irrigation and farming systems that are less vulnerable to changing weather conditions.

Source: Coasstweek: “Chipped Cassava triggers new economy in eastern Kenya” http://www.coastweek.com/kenxin_100212_06.htm