A Kenyan agronomist has warned farmers against venturing into some agribusinesses without knowledge, stating that they can turn into loss-making ventures.
In a video on his YouTube channel, Antonio Innocent Mudong’I explains that while some people have succeeded in these ventures, their survival chances are minimal, and therefore a lot of care, knowledge, and commitment are required.
“These agribusiness ventures that have the highest risks also have the highest profit margins if at all you succeed,” he says.
According to him, the riskiest agribusinesses that can make a farmer rich or poor immediately are:
Cabbage farming
According to Mudong’I, cabbage farming is profitable but its biggest nightmare is price fluctuations. He explains that when the market is flooded, a farmer can end up making no profit.
“Cabbage can make you super rich but the chances of making you cry are so high. There is a time when cabbage can drop from Sh50 to free. This is a business that I would think twice before investing in it,’’ he says.
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Chicken farming
According to Mudong’I, chicken farming is not a walk in the park as most people perceive it. He says the venture requires a lot of knowledge from brooding, feeding, and market.
“Brooding is very tricky and very few make it in brooding. When you escape the tunnel of brooding, you meet something called coccidiosis when the birds are between week 6 and 8. Some farmers feed their birds feed that do not have coccidiostats and that why they end up losing their entire flock,” he says.
The agronomist says that other diseases that farmers struggle with are Newcastle, which is contained through regular vaccination.
“Chicken farming can make you an overnight millionaire or an overnight pervert,” he says.
Tomato farming
Mudong’I recalled how he once lost over Sh500,000 in tomato farming. He explains that the biggest challenge in tomato farming is pests and diseases.
“This is a venture that when you are not hit by hailstones, you will be hit by aphids called whitefly; If you are not hit by whitefly, there is a blight waiting for you. Whiteflies hit when it’s too hot, while hailstones or blight hit when it’s too rainy. When it’s too rainy again, the market becomes flooded and you have nowhere to sell your produce,” he said.
