Unlike most graduates who chase employment after school, Kimutai Maselus’ focus on agribusiness is a testament that farming is a goldmine.
The 28-year-old owns a fruit farm in Eldoret, Uasin Gishu county, that blossoms with various fruits including apple, passion fruit, and avocado.
Narrating his journey in farming, Kimutai revealed that his decision to venture into apple farming followed extensive research that unveiled a low production of apples in the country against a high demand.
His business includes both the sale of seedlings as well as fruit production. He notes that apple seedlings fetch the highest amount, given the lucrative nature of the plant.
“Apples make me more money because I sell them at 800 Shillings per seedling. When a farmer grows these seedlings, within a period of 2 years, he can make up to 30,000 per tree,’’ he explains.
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Kimutai adds that after planting, apples take 8 months to mature, depending on variety. He adds that he harvests the fruits twice a year, pocketing around Sh3.8 million per year.
He explains that one tree can produce up to 50 kilos of apples, which he sells for Sh350 per kilo. With a population of 1,200 apple trees, Kimutai makes between Sh15,000 to Sh20,000 from each tree.
He, however, clarifies that it takes around 2.5 years for a single apple tree to give such returns noting that production is usually low in the first years.
Besides apples, Kimutai grows avocado, passion fruit, macadamia, and pixie. His 192 Hass avocado trees give him between 600-800 fruits per tree, which are sold at Sh100 per kilo.
“I expect between Sh8,000 to Sh10,000 from one avocado tree,” he adds.
Kimutai sells his produce locally to various companies that buy directly from his farm. The farmer also pointed out the lucrative nature of passion fruits, revealing that he makes up to Sh3 million from an acre per year.
“The advantage of passion fruit is that you harvest weekly and can give you around Sh70,000 per week and around Sh250,000 per month.’’ He says, adding that the purple variety is the most lucrative.
