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Add Cotton Waste Biofuel Powers Farmers to Fight Drought In Kenya

Glory Bordelon 2025-01-12 18:24:33 +08:00
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<br>By Nita Bhalla<br>
<br>KITUI, Kenya, June 6 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Kenyan farmer Abel Mutie Mathoka believed it needs to be a joke when he was [informed](https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/ipos/overview?dealId=804419-65608) he might water his drought-hit crops more cheaply, easily and efficiently using a pump fuelled by cotton waste.<br>
<br>"Who could think it's possible to make a fuel better than diesel from cotton seeds? I didn't!" laughed Mathoka, crouching down to inspect 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, strolling over to a close-by tree and plucking a big green pawpaw. "Irrigation with this biodiesel water pump has helped me get greater yields, specifically throughout dry spell periods."<br>
<br>Mathoka stated his incomes had doubled in the two years he has actually been pumping water using [biodiesel](https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/ipos/overview?dealId=804419-65608), which is both more effective and 20 shillings ($0.20) per litre less expensive than regular diesel.<br>
<br>The biodiesel he is using is not just good news for him - it is also [excellent news](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159352/mission-newenergy-debt-free-focused-on-biofuel-joint-venture-60797.html) for the world.<br>
<br>Unlike the majority of biofuels, which are [originated](https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-178469/company/) from crops such as maize, sugarcane, soybean, rapeseed and [jatropha](https://www.energy-xprt.com/companies/mission-newenergy-limited-36048), it is made from a [by-product](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/mission-newenergy) of the cotton-making procedure.<br>
<br>That suggests that in addition to being cleaner and more affordable than regular fuel, it is more sustainable than other biofuels because no additional land is needed to [produce](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/) it.<br>
<br>From Brazil to Indonesia, the rush to cultivate [biofuel](https://stocktwits.com/symbol/MNEL) crops has actually driven forest [neighborhoods](https://stocktwits.com/symbol/MNEL) off their land and [pushed farmers](https://www.intelligentinvestor.com.au/shares/asx-mbt/mission-newenergy-limited/share-price) to switch from crops-for-food to more successful crops-for-fuel - exacerbating food [scarcities](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159352/mission-newenergy-debt-free-focused-on-biofuel-joint-venture-60797.html).<br>
<br>"Our biodiesel originates from squashing cotton seeds left over as waste after ginning - the procedure of separating the seeds from raw cotton," stated Taher Zavery, of Zaynagro Industries Ltd, the Kitui-based company 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, sell it to the United Nations to run some of their buses - and also to local farmers for watering."<br>
<br>More than 1,200 farmers in Kitui have actually so far invested in biodiesel pumps for irrigation as part of an initiative introduced by Zaynagro in 2015, said Zavery.<br>
<br>DRY RIVER BEDS<br>
<br>Climate modification is taking a toll across east Africa and progressively irregular weather condition is becoming commonplace in countries such as Kenya, Somalia, Uganda and Ethiopia, resulting in lower rains.<br>
<br>The repeating droughts are damaging crops and pastures and are starving animals - pressing countless people in the Horn of Africa to the verge of severe cravings.<br>
<br>The variety of Kenyans in need of food aid in March surged by nearly 70 percent over a period of eight months to 1.1 million, mostly due to bad rains, according to government figures.<br>
<br>With almost half Kenya's 47 counties declared to have a [severe scarcity](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1463471/000165495419013063/R31.htm) of rain, humanitarian companies are warning of increased cravings in the months ahead.<br>
<br>"Only light rainfall is anticipated through June ... and this is not anticipated to ease dry spell in impacted locations of Kenya and Somalia," stated the Famine Early Warning Systems Network in its newest report.<br>
<br>"Well below-average crop production, bad animals body conditions, and increased local food rates are prepared for, which will minimize bad households' access to food."<br>
<br>In Kitui's Kyuso location, the indications are currently obvious.<br>
<br>Rivers, water pans and dams are drying up as a result of the extended dry spell.<br>
<br>Villagers suffer trekking longer ranges - often more than 10 km (6 miles) with their donkeys packed with empty jerry cans looking for water.<br>
<br>Small-scale farmers, most of whom depend on rain-fed farming, talk about [strategies](https://www.energy-xprt.com/companies/mission-newenergy-limited-36048) 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 but growing number are shedding their burden of reliance on the weather - and investing in watering systems powered by Zaynagro's cotton seed [biodiesel](https://www.investing.com/equities/mission-newenergy-ltd-company-profile) through a pay-as-you-go plan introduced more than 3 years ago.<br>
<br>Neighbouring farmers band together to invest in the watering system - which consists of the biodiesel pump, 12 metres of pipelines and 10 litres of biodiesel - at costs starting from 32,000 shillings, depending upon the size of the pump.<br>
<br>The farmers make an initial payment, then pay interest-free regular monthly instalments up until the total is paid off. They buy the biodiesel to run the pumps from Zaynagro at 80 shillings a litre.<br>
<br>Farmer Alex Babu Kitheka, 39, said the [biodiesel pump](https://www.energy-xprt.com/companies/mission-newenergy-limited-36048) permitted him to water a larger part of his one-acre plot, where he grows a range 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 pump, I can make 45,000 shillings," stated Alex Babu Kitheka, standing near his plot in Ilangilo village, 40 km (25 miles) from Kitui town.<br>
<br>CIRCULAR ECONOMY<br>
<br>Other farmers point to the scheme as a significant benefit in helping improve their output.<br>
<br>"The instalment scheme is great. Most farmers don't have the cash and can not easily get a loan to purchase a pump like this," said Maurice Kitheka Munyoki, 41, as he stood beside his blue biodiesel pump.<br>
<br>"Having a scheme like this helps us a lot. Our yields are great which implies we can pay off the cost of the pump slowly in little quantities, and have money left over to pay the school fees."<br>
<br>Zaynagro's initiative is still in its early phases, with few farmers having paid back the complete [expense](https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/company/MNELF:US) of the pumps.<br>
<br>But such [biofuel](https://www.energy-xprt.com/companies/mission-newenergy-limited-36048) plans are promising since they produce a circular economy by turning waste to [biofuel](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) for profit, [stated Sanjoy](https://www.businessnews.com.au/Company/Mission-NewEnergy) Sanyal, senior associate for Clean Energy Finance at the World Resources Institute.<br>
<br>The simpleness of the model - easy-to-use, robust technology, ensured supply of [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) combined with a pay-as-you-go plan - might help electrify rural Africa, he said.<br>
<br>"There is a mosaic of sustainable energy options worldwide. The crucial issue is testing ideas and techniques in a collective fashion," stated Sanyal.<br>
<br>"Other cotton ginning factories in the area must attempt and learn from this experiment. Banks should start explore loans to groups of farmers. International donors and financiers require to support experimentation."<br>
<br>($1 = 101.3000 Kenyan shillings) (Reporting by [Nita Bhalla](https://www.pinterest.com.au/missionnewenergy/) @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, property rights and environment modification. Visit http://news.trust.org)<br>