In Ngobit village, South Imenti location in Laikipia County, lies a 23-acre-farm of one farmer Peter Wambugu christened ‘Wambugu Apples Eden Garden’ that has for years been a must-go for farmers intending to venture into Apple farming.
In an interview with Inspire Global, Wambugu revealed he started farming after completing his primary school education.
He started as a farmworker at a friend’s farm but later quit to soldier on his own after working diligently managing chickens, pigs, and dairy cows.
His journey in Apple farming began in 1985 at his ancestral home in Tetu Constituency, Nyeri, where he grew the rare fruits on a small scale.
Demand for the fruits started increasing steadily among his customers, including hotels in Nanyuki Town. Unable to cope with the rising demand, Wambugu started thinking of ways of increasing the supply.
He would later learn of wild apples that were growing within the neighboring Aberdares Forest and started picking them.
According to Wambugu, the introduction of the apples at the Aberdares Forest was done by colonial-era freedom fighters who stole seedlings from white settlers and planted them within the Forest that served as their main hideout.
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It was from here that Wambugu stumbled on them and went ahead and transplanted some of the seedlings in his farm and grafted them with the regular hybrid varieties giving rise to ‘Wambugu Apple’ that has to date become his brand name.
He later purchased 23 acres of land in Laikipia and relocated his business, where he currently grows the fruits on a large scale.
Unlike the conventional ones that are round in shape, Wambugu’s apples have elongated oval shape and have undergone tests with the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KARLO) and have been given a clean bill of health.
In 2001, Wambugu recalled meeting some white men at the Westgate Mall who requested him to sell his business to them for Sh30 million.
”They (the white men) had seen my story in the Nation Newspaper so they called me and requested me to meet them at the Westgate Mall. I thought they needed some seedlings. At first, I thought they were cons, so I asked my two kids to accompany me.”
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”So we sat there waiting for them to request for seedlings but I was surprised they wanted to buy Wambugu Apple business for Sh30 million. They had already come with the money in cash, but I told them I wasn’t interested in the money,’’ he recalled.
While his children forced him to take the money, he refused and maintained that he could not sell a project that he built out of a dream.
22 years down the line, Wambugu is happy he never sold his business for Sh30 million as it is now worth billions of shillings.
“It is a profitable business because we no longer walk on foot, all my four children are driving and living comfortably,” says Wambugu.
A piece of Wambugu apple goes for Sh100, and the seedling at Sh1,000.
His farm also hosts other fruits, including dragon fruits, peach, and Pepino melon, which he sells at Sh1,000 per piece of dragon fruit and the seedling at Sh2,000, pomegranates and peach for Sh500 with peach seedlings going for Sh10 000 while pepino melon sells at Sh200.
“A 90-kilo bag of peaches sells at Sh180,000 while a full-grown apple tree can produce 4,000 fruits in one season, and mathematically speaking, this should tell you that there is value in this business,” says the farmer.
Wambugu Apple has generated great demand in various parts of the globe, including America, Europe, and several African countries.