When Daniel Wachira experienced a severe stomach ache after eating sweet potatoes from his farm, he could not point out what the problem was. He was not alone, as his family, friends and loyal customers complained about the same problem.
A visit to the doctor awakened him to the realities of food poisoning from the chemicals he had been applying on his 10-acre Chaka farm in Nyeri. The soils had been saturated with chemicals and eventually absorbed into his produce.
“The sweet potatoes had absorbed chemicals over the years and once consumed they made us sick. To avoid such an incident in future, I decided to go organic to produce clean and natural food,” he said.
This marked a new beginning for the farmer, who has become a household name in Central Kenya for his organic farm store, Fazendo Organico.
Through this store, he sells his organic crops to Nyeri residents and neighbouring towns, as well as supplying them to markets in Nairobi.
On his farm, the veteran farmer practices mixed agriculture. In addition to growing organic plants, Daniel Wachira raises cows, goats, rabbits, chickens, and bees. He utilizes manure from these animals as a source of organic fertilizer for his plants.
“I have been a horticulture farmer for the past 10 years, farming mainly capsicum, carrots, coriander (dhania), Chinese cabbages, sukuma wiki, spinach, passion fruit, pawpaw, lettuce, spring onions, tree tomatoes, sweet potatoes and traditional vegetables,” he said in a past interview.
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“I ensure the manure is well composted before applying it on the crops. I keep 120 rabbits, 300 chickens, 50 goats and 30 dairy cows.”
Daniel employs traditional pest prevention methods to minimize the use of chemicals. For instance, he has cultivated Mexican marigold weeds along the borders of his farm to keep away insects like Aphids.
He has also adopted organic pesticides on his farm, which are prepared by blending pepper, garlic, pyrethrum, and aloe vera. These natural concoctions effectively combat pests like aphids and cutworms.
“I mash the crops and boil, ending up with a concoction that I mix with water before spraying. It is an effective pesticide,” he said, adding that he used tithonia and lantana camara to make foliar fertiliser and pesticide.
By owning his organic farm shop for his produce, Wachira says that he has been able to eliminate brokers since he controls the prices for his rich produce.
“Through the shop, I have managed to get rid of brokers since I can control the prices depending on demand and supply. Buyers also know where they can get organic produce.”
A kilo of vegetables such as spinach retails at Sh. 20 per bunch, subject to seasonal fluctuations in prices. He also sells milk from his dairy cows at Sh. 50 per litre, through his Milk ATM.
Wachira sells rabbit meat at Sh. 700 per kilogram and eggs at Sh. 15 each. He noted that prior to establishing an organic farm shop, extensive research is required.
“And you should be honest with your products. That is, do not lie that you are not using chemicals whereas you are not farming organically,” he maintained.