For over 10 years, Joe Irungu has been farming pumpkins in Murang’a, a venture that has made him quite prosperous. He turned to pumpkins after struggling with herbal medicine.

He initially tried growing maize, tomatoes, and vegetables but was frustrated by high production costs and poor returns. In a past interview, Irungu explained that he found his passion for growing pumpkins after meeting a successful farmer during a tour in Uganda.

Since then, he has been growing the Israel Giant Pumpkin, the best variety for commercial pumpkin farming. He started on a quarter-acre piece of land, which gave him a bountiful harvest.

“I took a few lessons from the farmer and decided to try my luck back home. The high returns motivated me to continue farming, which has helped improve my livelihood,” he said.

He enjoys growing pumpkins because they mature in just 3 months and can be planted up to 3 times a year. They also require minimal maintenance, except during cold seasons when they need to be sprayed to prevent frost.

Insect traps also need to be laid to catch pests which may destroy the crop during the flowering stage. The Israel Giant Pumpkin is high-yielding and one single piece can weigh as much as 50kg.

“A kilogram of pumpkin goes for Sh. 20 therefore a single piece of this variety can fetch up to Sh. 1000,” he said.

Irungu’s journey didn’t stop at growing pumpkins. He ventured into value addition by producing pumpkin flour. The passionate farmer set up a processing factory, which also brings him good returns.

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To sustain the flour production, Irungu has engaged farmers from Murang’a and other neighbouring counties to supply him with pumpkins for processing. The process entails the fruit being cut into small chips and then being dried and later processed into flour.

“Pure pumpkin flour is quite expensive as a kilo goes for Sh. 1000. So we have been making blended flour by mixing pumpkin with products such as cassava, arrowroots, and bananas to make it affordable,” Irungu clarified.

Pumpkins have long been stereotyped as food for the poor or for small children, despite their high nutritional value. Irungu notes that customers are warming up to pumpkin flour because they can make several products from it.

“Our flour is of high quality because it is not only meant for the local market but also the international consumers,” he added.

As a parting shot, Irungu encouraged farmers to try pumpkin farming, stating its high returns and the ready market for produce.