Potato Farming in Nyandarua County

Nyandarua County is located in the former central province of Kenya. it’s capital and largest town is Ol Kalou which was formerly the capital of Nyahururu.

Nyandarua county is known for its large scale production of potatoes in the country. A research showed that 40 per cent of potatoes in the county come from Nyandarua, which proves the great potential that the county holds in the field of potato production.

This calls for interested investors not to hesitate, but go and make use of the available resources that will at the end of it all give back great returns. There are different areas in the potato sector that need to be invested in and they include financing large scale production, potato processing and marketing of the produce.

Despite the hard work and resources that potato farmers put so as to get some profit, most of them are exploited through the hands of middlemen who pretend to help them get ready market for their produce, only for them to benefit themselves leaving the farmers with very little or no profit at all.

A potato processing plant, if made available in the county will be a relief to these farmers. At least, they will be able to sell their produce to a trusted investor and get value for their produce.

They also need some more enlightenment on the use of modern potato farming machinery and seedlings. They also need packaging and storage facilities. Most of them still use the traditional methods since they have no access to the modern techniques for potato farming.

Adoption of mechanized potato farming systems and introduction of improved seed varieties will lead to increased production. Introduction of new seedlings will also mark an end to potato blight and some other diseases that tend to affect the crop. This usually leads to low yields coupled with losses incurred during ploughing, planting and during harvest time.

The advantage of investing in Nyandarua county is the availability of good transport network, that is, the Nairobi-Nakuru highway and the proximity of the county to the capital city. This makes transportation of the produce to the airport for export easy and abit cheaper.

The county has the potential of being in the league of other irish potato powerhouses like the Netherlands and Poland, only is an integrated market based approach to potato farming is given a priority. Nyandarua county is therefore the place to invest in without any hesitation.

Article by Vera Shawiza.