In Maragua constituency, Murang'a County, a transition among farmers towards plantain banana cultivation over traditional banana types is being observed. Fredrick Kinyanjui, a local farmer, highlighted the diminishing returns from conventional bananas as a catalyst for his switch to plantain farming. The decline in profitability is largely due to the significant cut taken by middlemen, prompting farmers to seek alternatives like plantain bananas, which offer higher market returns without the involvement of middlemen. Kinyanjui, who has replaced his banana crops with plantains, noted, "Nurturing a banana stem to maturity takes close to a year and ends up fetching sh.10 ($0.08) or less per kilogram and that is why I uprooted my bananas and opted for the plantain variety that fetches up to five times in the market compared to the normal bananas."
On his two-acre farm in Kamahuha, Kinyanjui has successfully cultivated over 250 plantain stems from an initial 84 mother plants since October 2020. He shared insights into the cultivation process, emphasizing the importance of proper irrigation, especially during dry periods, which enables harvest within 9 to 12 months. Kinyanjui also detailed the planting procedure, soil pH preference of 5.5 for plantains, and their resilience to pests and diseases, which contributes to their higher return on investment.
By selling mature plantains at a farm gate price of Sh60 ($0.49) per kilo and suckers at Sh300 ($2.44) each, Kinyanjui has significantly boosted his income, also offering agronomic support to aspiring plantain farmers. The shift to plantain farming is not only economically viable but also promotes health benefits associated with the fruit's nutritional content. Additionally, Kinyanjui encourages farmers to explore value addition in the banana sector to enhance profitability and extend shelf life.
Source: Kenya News Agency