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Add Cotton Waste Biofuel Powers Farmers to Combat Drought In Kenya

Esperanza Cardell 2025-01-11 19:50:20 +00:00
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<br>By Nita Bhalla<br>
<br>KITUI, Kenya, June 6 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Kenyan farmer Abel Mutie Mathoka believed it must be a joke when he was informed he could water his drought-hit crops more inexpensively, cleanly and [efficiently utilizing](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/mission-newenergy) a pump fuelled by cotton waste.<br>
<br>"Who could believe it's possible to make a fuel much better than diesel from cotton seeds? I didn't!" chuckled Mathoka, bending down to check the watermelons on his 10-acre (four-hectare) shared plot in Ituri town in Kenya's southeast Kitui county.<br>
<br>"But it works," he stated, strolling over to a neighboring tree and plucking a large green pawpaw. "Irrigation with this biodiesel water pump has assisted me get higher yields, particularly throughout drought periods."<br>
<br>Mathoka stated his profits had actually doubled in the two years he has been pumping water using biodiesel, which is both more efficient and 20 shillings ($0.20) per litre more affordable than regular diesel.<br>
<br>The biodiesel he is utilizing is not just good news for him - it is likewise excellent news for the world.<br>
<br>Unlike many biofuels, which are originated from crops such as maize, sugarcane, soybean, rapeseed and [jatropha curcas](https://www.investing.com/equities/mission-newenergy-ltd-company-profile), it is made from a byproduct of the cotton-making procedure.<br>
<br>That implies that in addition to being cleaner and less expensive than regular fuel, it is more sustainable than other biofuels because no extra land is required to [produce](https://www.intelligentinvestor.com.au/shares/asx-mbt/mission-newenergy-limited/share-price) it.<br>
<br>From Brazil to Indonesia, the rush to cultivate [biofuel](https://www.google.com/search?kgmid=/m/0cqd_rb) crops has driven forest neighborhoods off their land and pressed farmers to switch from crops-for-food to more successful crops-for-fuel - intensifying food shortages.<br>
<br>"Our biodiesel originates from squashing cotton seeds left over as waste after ginning - the process of separating the seeds from raw cotton," said Taher Zavery, managing director of Zaynagro Industries Ltd, the Kitui-based business producing the [biodiesel](https://biodieselmagazine.com/articles/felda-global-buys-missions-kuantan-port-plant-for-11-5-million-9053).<br>
<br>"We started producing and utilizing 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 a few of their buses - and also to local farmers for irrigation."<br>
<br>More than 1,200 farmers in Kitui have so far purchased biodiesel pumps for irrigation as part of an initiative released 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 countries such as Kenya, Somalia, Uganda and Ethiopia, resulting in lower rainfall.<br>
<br>The repeating dry spells are destroying crops and pastures and are starving animals - pushing countless people in the Horn of Africa to the edge of [severe hunger](https://stocktwits.com/symbol/MNEL).<br>
<br>The variety of Kenyans in requirement of food help in March rose by nearly 70 percent over a period of eight months to 1.1 million, largely due to bad rains, according to federal government figures.<br>
<br>With nearly half Kenya's 47 counties stated to have a major shortage of rain, humanitarian agencies are warning of increased cravings in the months ahead.<br>
<br>"Only light rainfall is anticipated through June ... and this is not anticipated to minimize drought in affected areas of Kenya and Somalia," stated the Famine Early Warning Systems Network in its most current report.<br>
<br>"Well below-average crop production, poor livestock body conditions, and increased regional food costs are expected, which will minimize poor households' access to food."<br>
<br>In Kitui's Kyuso area, the indications are currently evident.<br>
<br>Rivers, water pans and dams are drying up as an [outcome](https://www.businessnews.com.au/Company/Mission-NewEnergy) of the prolonged drought.<br>
<br>Villagers experience travelling longer ranges - sometimes more than 10 km (6 miles) with their [donkeys](https://www.businessnews.com.au/Company/Mission-NewEnergy) laden with empty jerry cans searching for water.<br>
<br>Small-scale farmers, the majority of whom depend on rain-fed farming, go over plans to offer their goats to make ends satisfy if the harvest is bad.<br>
<br>BATTLING DROUGHT WITH [BIODIESEL](https://biodieselmagazine.com/articles/felda-global-buys-missions-kuantan-port-plant-for-11-5-million-9053)<br>
<br>But not all Kitui's farmers are stressed.<br>
<br>A little however [growing](https://forest500.org/rankings/companies/mission-newenergy-limited) number are shedding their burden of dependence on the weather condition - and [buying irrigation](https://www.energy-xprt.com/companies/mission-newenergy-limited-36048) systems powered by Zaynagro's cotton seed biodiesel through a pay-as-you-go scheme released more than three years ago.<br>
<br>Neighbouring farmers unite to invest in the watering system - that includes the 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 an initial payment, then [pay interest-free](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/) monthly instalments until the overall is settled. They purchase the biodiesel to run the pumps from Zaynagro at 80 shillings a litre.<br>
<br>Farmer Alex Babu Kitheka, 39, said the [biodiesel](https://biodieselmagazine.com/articles/felda-global-buys-missions-kuantan-port-plant-for-11-5-million-9053) pump allowed him to irrigate a bigger 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 3 months. With the [biodiesel](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/) pump, I can earn 45,000 shillings," said Alex Babu Kitheka, standing near his plot in [Ilangilo](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) town, 40 km (25 miles) from Kitui town.<br>
<br>CIRCULAR ECONOMY<br>
<br>Other farmers point to the scheme as a major benefit in helping improve their output.<br>
<br>"The instalment plan is great. Most farmers don't have the cash and can not easily get a loan to buy a pump like this," stated Maurice Kitheka Munyoki, 41, as he stood next to his blue [biodiesel](https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/ipos/overview?dealId=804419-65608) pump.<br>
<br>"Having a plan like this assists us a lot. Our yields are great which suggests we can settle the expense of the pump gradually in percentages, and have cash left over to pay the school fees."<br>
<br>Zaynagro's effort is still in its early stages, with few farmers having repaid the full expense of the pumps.<br>
<br>But such [biofuel](https://www.zoominfo.com/c/mission-newenergy/346542889) plans are promising due to the fact that they develop a circular economy by turning waste to [biofuel](https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/ipos/overview?dealId=804419-65608) for revenue, said Sanjoy Sanyal, senior partner for Clean Energy Finance at the World Resources Institute.<br>
<br>The simplicity of the [design -](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1463471/000165495419013063/R31.htm) easy-to-use, robust innovation, ensured supply of [biodiesel](https://www.zoominfo.com/c/mission-newenergy/346542889) combined with a pay-as-you-go plan - might assist electrify rural Africa, he said.<br>
<br>"There is a mosaic of sustainable energy choices on the planet. The key issue is testing concepts and methods in a collaborative fashion," stated Sanyal.<br>
<br>"Other cotton ginning factories in the area need to try and learn from this experiment. Financial institutions should begin try out loans to groups of farmers. International donors and financiers need to support experimentation."<br>
<br>($1 = 101.3000 Kenyan shillings) ([Reporting](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/) by Nita Bhalla @nitabhalla, Editing by Claire Cozens. Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's and LGBT+ rights, human trafficking, home rights and environment modification. Visit http://news.trust.org)<br>