Orange farming is perhaps the holy grail for farmers looking to switch to cash crop farming. Cultivating oranges remains an untapped venture despite the fruit’s popularity in Kenya, ranking as the fourth most eaten fruit.

In a largely subsistence-based production country, many farmers are yet to explore orange farming.

However, orange farming will exponentially increase, owing to the accompanying good return on investment (ROI). Also, the demand for juicy oranges is high all-throughout while its supply is low.

That is why orange farming is profitable, with both the local market and an increasing export market.

If you’re looking to practice orange farming, here are some basics that will guide you through setting up, maintaining, and earning from orange farming in Kenya!

Capital Needs

Orange trees are perennial fruits, meaning they’ll bear an annual crop. Therefore, the one-acre piece will have to be cultivated for at least three years before the farmer starts seeing a good ROI.

The upfront capital needs of orange farming in Kenya include all costs of acquiring land, preparing it for cultivation, planting the trees, and maintaining them during the early years.

Education and training are an essential part of any farming venture. Therefore, the farmer should seek to acquire adequate knowledge on best farming practices and orange tree cultivation skills before embarking on it. This way, they’ll get more of a return from their investment and produce high-quality yields of oranges for a profitable sale.

Orange Farming Expenses on a 1-acre Piece in Kenya

The expense for acquiring a 1-acre piece for orange farming in Kenya includes the land price, equipment purchase, and conveyance charges.

Depending on how close or far you acquire your land, the cost can range from Kshs1 million to about Kshs 3 million.

To effectively manage an acre farm for orange farming, you will need several equipment.

A bicycle or car for transportation between farm and nursery.

Motor pump, hoe, and other agriculture equipment for preparing the land and planting the trees. The pump is used to bore holes into the ground for planting orange seeds. Also, a motor pump would be necessary to water the seedling during dry periods.

As oranges are citrus fruits requiring pollination, you will need to acquire or rent bee boxes with bees. The number of beehives required is relative to the extent of your farm and expected production per year.

Pest control services are provided by local authorities free of charge in most parts of Kenya. However, one still needs to procure the necessary chemicals for spraying them on the pests during dry seasons.

These would cost between Kshs 5,000 to 10,000 per month, depending on which chemicals you’ll use.

The need for irrigation is an essential part of orange farming in Kenya. Irrigation ensures your orange trees get enough water supply aside from rainfall to produce high-quality fruits throughout the year.

• The options for irrigation include the following:
• Pumping water from a nearby stream to your farm
• Digging a shallow well on your farm and pumping water from it through a hand pump
• Building a borehole on your farm and using an electric motor pump to draw water from it. Large-scale farmers mostly use this method.Electricity bills apply to all farmers using pump-sets for irrigation purposes on their farms. Therefore, the orange farmer should factor this into their budget when expecting revenues.

Expenses that can be cut down during orange farming in Kenya include fuel costs, rent of equipment, and wages paid to farmhands. One would need to respond to the market conditions and calculate how much to charge for their oranges.

Health insurance is an essential part of running any business. Farmers are at risk of being harmed by work-related injuries or diseases during orange farming. Therefore, they need resources to cater to medical expenses in case this happens.

During the early years of your operation, you will incur the costs of training farmers to grow oranges. The farmer should ensure they have acquired adequate knowledge about orange farming before embarking on it!

Years of Growth and Orange Farming Productivity

For your acre of land, there will be about 300 orange trees. When they reach optimum productivity, each tree should be producing between 150 to 200 oranges.

Typically, orange trees begin flowering in their second year. At this stage, you could get one tree producing about 10 fruits. Optimum productivity kicks in on the third year, with high-quality produce.

Challenges in Orange Farming in Kenya

The significant challenges during orange farming in Kenya are lack of adequate training for farmers, pest attacks, and diseases. The cost of production is also relatively high since manual labor is involved throughout the farming process.

Remember that with improper training, you risk losing your investment. Orange farming is intricate, especially in the initial stages, where you must consider myriads of factors.

Orange Farming Income in Kenya

An acre in Kenya yields about 3 tonnes or Kshs 120,000 oranges per year, given 1kg goes for Kshs 40, and a 93kg bag goes for approximately Kshs 4000.

The farmer can then sell these to sellers who transport them to cities for sale. However, the prices may fluctuate depending on market conditions.

In a good year, you could get between Kshs 75,000 and Kshs 150,000. This is a decent income considering one could have acquired the land for Kshs1 million or less.

Orange Farming Business Plan in Kenya

You should prepare an approximate budget of expenses, monthly revenue, and expected returns over 5-10 years before entering the orange farming business in Kenya.

The costs involved are equipment purchase, irrigation, chemicals, pest control services, electricity bills, and labor hiring.

The expected monthly revenue is the total value of oranges produced per hectare under normal weather conditions.

Therefore, one should estimate their costs and compare them to monthly returns throughout the period before re-evaluating their budget for better returns.

Now that you know the basics about orange farming in Kenya, there’s no better time to get on board!

You can always consult the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organisation (KALRO) for more information about orange farming in Kenya.