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Add Cotton Waste Biofuel Powers Farmers to Eliminate Drought In Kenya

Arden Tillman 2025-01-12 02:31:44 +08:00
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<br>By Nita Bhalla<br>
<br>KITUI, Kenya, June 6 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Kenyan farmer Abel Mutie Mathoka thought it must be a joke when he was told he might [irrigate](https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/ipos/overview?dealId=804419-65608) his drought-hit crops more cheaply, cleanly and efficiently using a pump sustained by cotton waste.<br>
<br>"Who could think it's possible to make a fuel better than diesel from cotton seeds? I didn't!" chuckled Mathoka, crouching down to inspect the watermelons on his 10-acre (four-hectare) shared plot in Ituri village in Kenya's southeast Kitui county.<br>
<br>"But it works," he stated, walking over to a neighboring tree and plucking a big green pawpaw. "Irrigation with this biodiesel water pump has helped me get greater yields, specifically during dry spell durations."<br>
<br>Mathoka stated his profits had doubled in the 2 years he has actually been pumping water using biodiesel, which is both more effective and 20 shillings ($0.20) per litre cheaper than regular diesel.<br>
<br>The [biodiesel](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1463471/000165495419013063/R31.htm) he is using is not just great news for him - it is also excellent news for the planet.<br>
<br>Unlike a lot of biofuels, which are obtained from crops such as maize, sugarcane, soybean, rapeseed and [jatropha curcas](https://forest500.org/rankings/companies/mission-newenergy-limited), it is made from a byproduct of the cotton-making process.<br>
<br>That [suggests](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/mission-newenergy) that as well as being cleaner and cheaper than regular fuel, it is more sustainable than other biofuels since no extra land is required to produce it.<br>
<br>From Brazil to Indonesia, the rush to cultivate [biofuel](https://www.energy-xprt.com/companies/mission-newenergy-limited-36048) crops has driven forest neighborhoods off their land and pushed farmers to switch from crops-for-food to more lucrative crops-for-fuel - worsening food lacks.<br>
<br>"Our biodiesel originates from crushing cotton seeds left over as waste after ginning - the procedure of separating the seeds from raw cotton," said Taher Zavery, handling director of Zaynagro Industries Ltd, the Kitui-based business producing the [biodiesel](https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/ipos/overview?dealId=804419-65608).<br>
<br>"We started producing and using it to power our cotton ginning factory in 2011. With increased production, we now use it for our trucks, sell it to the United Nations to run some of their buses - and also to regional farmers for irrigation."<br>
<br>More than 1,200 farmers in Kitui have so far bought [biodiesel](https://biodieselmagazine.com/articles/felda-global-buys-missions-kuantan-port-plant-for-11-5-million-9053) pumps for irrigation as part of an initiative launched by Zaynagro in 2015, stated Zavery.<br>
<br>DRY RIVER BEDS<br>
<br>Climate change is taking a toll throughout east Africa and increasingly erratic weather is ending up being commonplace in nations such as Kenya, Somalia, Uganda and Ethiopia, resulting in lower rainfall.<br>
<br>The repeating droughts are ruining crops and pastures and are starving animals - pressing millions of [individuals](https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/company/MNELF:US) in the Horn of Africa to the brink of severe appetite.<br>
<br>The variety of [Kenyans](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/mission-newenergy) in need of food help in March surged by nearly 70 percent over a duration of 8 months to 1.1 million, mainly due to bad rains, according to federal government figures.<br>
<br>With almost half Kenya's 47 [counties](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159352/mission-newenergy-debt-free-focused-on-biofuel-joint-venture-60797.html) stated to have a serious lack of rain, humanitarian companies are warning of increased hunger in the months ahead.<br>
<br>"Only light rainfall is anticipated through June ... and this is not anticipated to ease drought in impacted areas of Kenya and Somalia," said the Famine Early Warning Systems Network in its newest report.<br>
<br>"Well below-average crop production, poor livestock body conditions, and increased local food costs are expected, which will decrease bad households' access to food."<br>
<br>In Kitui's Kyuso location, the signs are currently obvious.<br>
<br>Rivers, water pans and dams are drying up as an outcome of the prolonged drought.<br>
<br>Villagers suffer travelling longer distances - in some cases more than 10 km (6 miles) with their with empty jerry cans in search of water.<br>
<br>Small-scale farmers, the majority of whom are reliant on rain-fed agriculture, discuss strategies to offer their goats to make ends fulfill if the harvest is poor.<br>
<br>BATTLING DROUGHT WITH BIODIESEL<br>
<br>But not all Kitui's farmers are stressed.<br>
<br>A little however growing number are shedding their burden of reliance on the weather condition - and purchasing watering systems powered by Zaynagro's cotton seed biodiesel through a pay-as-you-go scheme released more than three years back.<br>
<br>Neighbouring farmers unite to invest in the [watering](https://www.businessnews.com.au/Company/Mission-NewEnergy) system - which [consists](https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/51278-86) of the [biodiesel](https://biodieselmagazine.com/articles/felda-global-buys-missions-kuantan-port-plant-for-11-5-million-9053) pump, 12 metres of pipelines and 10 litres of biodiesel - at costs beginning with 32,000 shillings, depending upon the size of the pump.<br>
<br>The farmers make a preliminary payment, then pay interest-free monthly instalments up until the overall is settled. They purchase the [biodiesel](https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-178469/company/) to run the pumps from Zaynagro at 80 shillings a litre.<br>
<br>Farmer Alex Babu Kitheka, 39, stated the [biodiesel](https://www.google.com/search?kgmid=/m/0cqd_rb) pump permitted him to irrigate a larger portion of his one-acre plot, where he grows a variety of vegetables including maize, tomatoes, spinach and sweet potatoes.<br>
<br>"With a diesel pump, maize yields were lower and I would get 15,000 shillings in three months. With the [biodiesel](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159352/mission-newenergy-debt-free-focused-on-biofuel-joint-venture-60797.html) pump, I can earn 45,000 shillings," stated Alex Babu Kitheka, standing near his plot in Ilangilo town, 40 km (25 miles) from Kitui town.<br>
<br>CIRCULAR ECONOMY<br>
<br>Other farmers point to the plan as a significant benefit in assisting enhance their output.<br>
<br>"The instalment scheme is great. Most farmers do not have the money and can not easily get a loan to buy a pump like this," said Maurice Kitheka Munyoki, 41, as he stood next to his blue [biodiesel](https://biodieselmagazine.com/articles/felda-global-buys-missions-kuantan-port-plant-for-11-5-million-9053) pump.<br>
<br>"Having a scheme like this helps us a lot. Our yields are good which indicates we can pay off the cost of the pump slowly in percentages, and have cash left over to pay the school costs."<br>
<br>Zaynagro's effort is still in its early phases, with couple of farmers having actually paid back the full cost of the pumps.<br>
<br>But such [biofuel](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159352/mission-newenergy-debt-free-focused-on-biofuel-joint-venture-60797.html) plans are [promising](https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/ipos/overview?dealId=804419-65608) due to the fact that they create a [circular economy](https://www.abnnewswire.net/companies/en/31347/%E0%B8%9A%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%A9%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%97-Mission-NewEnergy-%E0%B8%88%E0%B8%B3%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%94.html/4) by turning waste to [biofuel](https://stocktwits.com/symbol/MNEL) for earnings, stated Sanjoy Sanyal, senior partner for Clean Energy Finance at the World Resources Institute.<br>
<br>The simpleness of the design - easy-to-use, robust innovation, assured supply of biodiesel integrated with a pay-as-you-go plan - could help amaze rural Africa, he stated.<br>
<br>"There is a mosaic of sustainable energy options in the world. The crucial issue is checking concepts and methods in a collective fashion," stated Sanyal.<br>
<br>"Other cotton ginning factories in the region ought to try and gain from this experiment. Financial institutions must start exploring with loans to groups of farmers. International donors and financiers need to support experimentation."<br>
<br>($1 = 101.3000 Kenyan shillings) (Reporting by Nita Bhalla @nitabhalla, Editing by Claire Cozens. Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, females's and LGBT+ rights, human trafficking, property rights and environment modification. Visit http://news.trust.org)<br>