Farmers in Busia County await bumper harvest of BT cotton

Teso,

Sunday, December 3, 2023

KNA by Absalom Namwalo

Cotton farmers in Busia County are looking forward to a bumper harvest for the first time after many years following government introduction of Bt cotton to revive production of the crop.

Farmers from Jairos cooperative society in Teso North Subcounty have attributed improved production this year to interventions by the government through supply of free hybrid cotton seeds and availability of subsidized fertilizers on the market.

Kenya approved the use of biotech cotton seeds one year ago after nearly two decades of intense lobbying and research.

According to the cooperative manager Aggrey Emojong, cotton has been one of the main cash crops for the Teso community, but over the years its production plummeted in some parts due to high prices of cottonseed and low prices of their farm produce which shattered hopes for many cotton farmers.

“For many years, cotton dominated most farms in Teso, until cartels in the sector began coning farmers and the attendant low prices of cotton in the market,” said Emojong.

“This year, the government supplied cotton seeds and pesticides to farmers for free, something that has seen the number of farmers rise from 540 last year to over 2000 only here in Teso North,” he added.

Before the intervention from the government Jairos Cooperative could only manage to collect 30,000 kg but as per records of 3rd December this year, already 45000kg of cotton has been collected according to chairperson Emojong.

“This year we anticipate to collect over 60,000 kg,” he noted. 

Emojong acknowledged the timely intervention by the government to increase the price per kilo of cotton from Sh55 to Sh65 which he said has boosted the morale of many farmers from the region.

However, the chairman wants the government to crackdown on brokers and cartels who are still deceiving farmers to supply their cotton to Uganda as opposed to ginneries in Kenya.

“We want the police and office of local administration to arrest all brokers from Uganda who buy cotton here in Teso at night,” said the cooperative chairperson.

His views were echoed by Imelda Tata who urged the government to revise cotton prices upward to fend off competition by dealers from neighboring Uganda who are buying the produce at Sh70.

“We thank the government for revising the prices to 65; our plea to the government is that with the current economy, it will be better for cotton prices to be increased to 80 to fend off competition from brokers from Uganda,” noted Tata.

Cotton, a crop known to thrive in marginal soils and arid landscapes, holds the potential to bestow prosperity to the smallholder farmer in such challenging terrains. As a beacon of hope, the resurgence of cotton production stands to breathe new life into local economies, infusing them with a surge of a steady source of income and vitality.

Kenya’s dalliance with cotton production has, unfortunately, been marred by underperformance, primarily attributable to a lack of adoption of high-yielding varieties.

As Phase One of this transformative project unfurls, the government gifted Busia farmers 17 tonnes of cotton seed which targeted over 11,000 acres across 11 wards, unravelling the promise of a revitalized agricultural landscape looming large.

This was followed by 82,000 bags of fertilizer to cotton farmers with the aim of reviving cotton farming from its dormant slumber.

BT cotton has a potential yield of upto 1500kg per acre as opposed to normal cotton which can’t go beyond 350kg per acre.

Courtesy; KNA