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Add Cotton Waste Biofuel Powers Farmers to Combat Drought In Kenya

Fidel Bourget 2025-01-12 17:20:42 +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 needs to be a joke when he was informed he might irrigate his drought-hit crops more inexpensively, easily and efficiently using 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, crouching down to examine 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 said, walking over to a neighboring tree and plucking a big green pawpaw. "Irrigation with this [biodiesel](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/) water pump has helped me get higher yields, especially throughout dry spell durations."<br>
<br>Mathoka stated his revenues had doubled in the 2 years he has actually been pumping water using biodiesel, which is both more efficient and 20 [shillings](https://www.businessnews.com.au/Company/Mission-NewEnergy) ($0.20) per litre more [affordable](https://www.intelligentinvestor.com.au/shares/asx-mbt/mission-newenergy-limited/share-price) than routine diesel.<br>
<br>The biodiesel he is using is not simply great news for him - it is also great news for the world.<br>
<br>Unlike most biofuels, which are derived from crops such as maize, sugarcane, soybean, rapeseed and [jatropha curcas](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/), it is made from a by-product of the cotton-making process.<br>
<br>That [suggests](https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/ipos/overview?dealId=804419-65608) that along with being cleaner and more affordable than routine fuel, it is more sustainable than other biofuels since no [extra land](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/mission-newenergy) is needed to produce it.<br>
<br>From Brazil to Indonesia, the rush to cultivate [biofuel](https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-178469/company/) crops has driven forest communities off their land and pressed farmers to change from [crops-for-food](https://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/ASX:MBT/Mission-NewEnergy-Ltd) to more successful crops-for-fuel - intensifying food lacks.<br>
<br>"Our [biodiesel](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) comes from squashing cotton seeds left over as waste after ginning - the process of separating the seeds from raw cotton," said Taher Zavery, handling director of Zaynagro Industries Ltd, the [Kitui-based company](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/) producing the biodiesel.<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, offer it to the United Nations to run a few of their buses - and likewise to regional farmers for irrigation."<br>
<br>More than 1,200 farmers in Kitui have actually up until now invested in [biodiesel](https://www.intelligentinvestor.com.au/shares/asx-mbt/mission-newenergy-limited/share-price) pumps for watering as part of an effort introduced by Zaynagro in 2015, said Zavery.<br>
<br>DRY RIVER BEDS<br>
<br>Climate modification is taking a toll throughout east Africa and progressively erratic weather is becoming commonplace in countries such as Kenya, Somalia, Uganda and Ethiopia, leading to lower rainfall.<br>
<br>The recurring droughts are ruining crops and pastures and are starving animals - pushing millions of individuals in the Horn of Africa to the brink of extreme hunger.<br>
<br>The number of Kenyans in requirement of food help in March surged by nearly 70 percent over a period of 8 months to 1.1 million, largely due to bad rains, according to federal government figures.<br>
<br>With practically half Kenya's 47 counties declared to have a severe shortage of rain, humanitarian companies are warning of increased appetite in the months ahead.<br>
<br>"Only light rains is anticipated through June ... and this is not anticipated to ease dry spell in affected locations of Kenya and Somalia," said the Famine Early Warning Systems Network in its latest report.<br>
<br>"Well below-average crop production, bad livestock body conditions, and increased local food costs are prepared for, which will minimize poor homes' access to food."<br>
<br>In Kitui's Kyuso location, the signs are currently apparent.<br>
<br>Rivers, [water pans](https://www.zoominfo.com/c/mission-newenergy/346542889) and dams are drying up as an outcome of the extended drought.<br>
<br>Villagers grumble of travelling longer distances - in some cases more than 10 km (6 miles) with their [donkeys loaded](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) with empty in search of water.<br>
<br>Small-scale farmers, the majority of whom are reliant on rain-fed farming, go over plans to sell their goats to make ends satisfy if the harvest is bad.<br>
<br>BATTLING DROUGHT WITH BIODIESEL<br>
<br>But not all Kitui's farmers are fretted.<br>
<br>A little but growing number are shedding their burden of reliance on the weather condition - and investing in watering systems powered by Zaynagro's cotton seed [biodiesel](https://www.energy-xprt.com/companies/mission-newenergy-limited-36048) through a pay-as-you-go plan released more than 3 years earlier.<br>
<br>Neighbouring farmers unite to buy the irrigation system - that includes the [biodiesel](https://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/ASX:MBT/Mission-NewEnergy-Ltd) pump, 12 metres of pipes and 10 litres of biodiesel - at costs beginning with 32,000 shillings, depending on the size of the pump.<br>
<br>The farmers make an initial payment, then pay interest-free regular monthly instalments till the total is paid off. They buy the [biodiesel](https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/ipos/overview?dealId=804419-65608) to run the pumps from Zaynagro at 80 shillings a litre.<br>
<br>Farmer Alex Babu Kitheka, 39, stated the biodiesel pump allowed him to water a bigger part of his one-acre plot, where he grows a variety of veggies 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.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159352/mission-newenergy-debt-free-focused-on-biofuel-joint-venture-60797.html) pump, I can earn 45,000 shillings," said 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 advantage in [assisting enhance](https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/company/MNELF:US) their output.<br>
<br>"The instalment plan is excellent. Most farmers don't have the cash and can not easily get a loan to purchase a pump like this," stated Maurice Kitheka Munyoki, 41, as he stood next to his blue biodiesel 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 gradually in percentages, and have cash left over to pay the school costs."<br>
<br>Zaynagro's initiative is still in its early stages, with few farmers having actually paid back the full expense of the pumps.<br>
<br>But such [biofuel](https://www.intelligentinvestor.com.au/shares/asx-mbt/mission-newenergy-limited/share-price) schemes are appealing since they produce a circular economy by turning waste to [biofuel](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/) for earnings, said Sanjoy Sanyal, senior associate 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 energize rural Africa, he said.<br>
<br>"There is a mosaic of sustainable energy options worldwide. The essential concern is checking concepts and techniques in a collective fashion," stated Sanyal.<br>
<br>"Other cotton ginning factories in the area must try and find out from this experiment. Financial organizations should begin try out loans to groups of farmers. International donors and investors require to support experimentation."<br>
<br>($1 = 101.3000 Kenyan shillings) (Reporting by Nita Bhalla @nitabhalla, Editing by Claire Cozens. Please credit the [Thomson Reuters](https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/51278-86) Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, ladies's and LGBT+ rights, human trafficking, property rights and climate modification. Visit http://news.trust.org)<br>