Plans to expand coffee plantations in Laikipia takes root

 Coffee farmers attending a  coffee tree in Kihuyo area in Kieni West, Nyeri County. [File, Standard]

Agriculture experts have identified suitable areas in Laikipia County where coffee can do better.

In the coffee revival programme, a venture between the national and county governments, Laikipia is among the new areas where the highly valued crop would be planted and nurtured.

According to County Government of Laikipia Finance Chief Officer Daniel Ngumi, areas where the coffee will be planted have been identified and farmers taken for intensive training.

In an interview with Smart Harvest, Ngumi, a resident of Laikipia West, said they already expect a share of 500,000 seedlings from the Coffee Research Institute (CRI) for distribution to the growers.

 Seventy percent of the residents in Laikipia derive their livelihood from agriculture, thus the need to create alternative incomes for them owing to lack of minerals like in other counties.

“Already, the farmers have received more than 20,000 coffee seedlings, which were distributed by Governor Joshua Irungu, who has the passion to provide Laikipia with a reliable cash crop,” he said.

 He added that the lead farmers have been trained for two weeks at CRI on nursery management, crop husbandry, control of diseases and pests, among others.

Coffee is planted in areas of Marmanet, with farmers celebrating the income, with the devolved unit working on establishment of infrastructure and cooperative movement structures.

“In the setup, the urban youth will be working in the coffee farms and value additional industries,” said Ngumi.

He added that there are ongoing meetings with parents at the village level designed to educate them on the need to portion their land to their children as part of preparing to transit to coffee farming.

John Chege says Laikipia stands a better chance to invest in coffee farming, owing to the vast land as in Murang’a and Kiambu land is shrinking owing to the housing projects.

He says areas picked for coffee farming are Marmanet, Githiga,  Olmoran, Pesi, Sipili and Muruku. 

“In Laikipia East,  areas planned for coffee farming are Tigithi, Mukima, Umande, Ngobit, among others,” he adds.