The statement You do not need a silver spoon to achieve great things in life rings true to Moses Karimi Githaiga, the founder of Saumu Centre Limited, a garlic seed production and training hub.
In an interview with Agribusiness TV, Karimi, who grew up in Kiawara village in Kieni constituency, Nyeri county, narrated his humble beginnings, having dropped out of school to hustle for survival.
The primary school dropout explained that he moved to Kisumu, where he did menial jobs, including hawking and sharpening knives for locals.
However, he couldn’t let his passion for farming go, and it was not long before he returned to his village to farm after conducting thorough research on the most profitable agribusiness.
Eldoret farmers, traders lose millions to agent who promised Canada visas, jobs
The farmer started with tomatoes and French beans before discovering a more profitable venture –garlic farming.
He propagated his own garlic seeds and halved the maturity period from eight to four months. The process involved sun drying for one month, disinfecting with chlorine, and cleaning with organic soap.
Karimi then sprinkled the bulbs with salt to stop moisture formation on surfaces before planting 25 kilogrammes of garlic on a quarter-acre piece of land.
Within four months, he harvested 800 kilograms and sold a kilo at KSh 100, making KSh 80,000. The good returns inspired him to expand the land under garlic to one acre.
From the one-acre farm, he harvested 4,800kg, which earned him KSh 480,000. He continued expanding his farm up to 13 acres, which earned him Sh4.8 million after harvest.
“I earned KSh 4.8 million from 13 acres of garlic farm. But now I vary my planting to supply my clients all year round,” he said.
Besides farming, Karimi also trains other people intending to venture into garlic farming on the best farming practices. He also produces chamomile for sale.