Add Cotton Waste Biofuel Powers Farmers to Eliminate Drought In Kenya
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<br>By Nita Bhalla<br>
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<br>KITUI, Kenya, June 6 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Kenyan farmer Abel Mutie Mathoka thought it must be a joke when he was informed he could irrigate his drought-hit crops more inexpensively, cleanly and efficiently using a pump sustained by cotton waste.<br>
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<br>"Who could think it's possible to make a fuel better than diesel from cotton seeds? I didn't!" laughed Mathoka, bending down to inspect the watermelons on his 10-acre (four-hectare) shared plot in Ituri town in Kenya's southeast Kitui county.<br>
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<br>"But it works," he said, [strolling](https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/company/MNELF:US) over to a nearby tree and plucking a big green pawpaw. "Irrigation with this biodiesel water pump has actually helped me get greater yields, specifically during dry spell periods."<br>
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<br>Mathoka stated his [incomes](https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/51278-86) had actually doubled in the 2 years he has actually been pumping water using [biodiesel](https://biodieselmagazine.com/articles/felda-global-buys-missions-kuantan-port-plant-for-11-5-million-9053), which is both more effective and 20 [shillings](https://www.zoominfo.com/c/mission-newenergy/346542889) ($0.20) per litre more affordable than routine diesel.<br>
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<br>The biodiesel he is using is not simply good news for him - it is also good news for the world.<br>
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<br>Unlike most biofuels, which are stemmed from crops such as maize, sugarcane, soybean, rapeseed and [jatropha](https://www.investing.com/equities/mission-newenergy-ltd-company-profile), it is made from a byproduct of the cotton-making process.<br>
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<br>That means that in addition to being cleaner and more affordable than routine fuel, it is more sustainable than other biofuels due to the fact that no additional land is required to produce it.<br>
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<br>From Brazil to Indonesia, the rush to cultivate [biofuel](https://stocktwits.com/symbol/MNEL) crops has driven forest neighborhoods off their land and [pressed farmers](https://www.businessnews.com.au/Company/Mission-NewEnergy) to switch from crops-for-food to more lucrative crops-for-fuel - intensifying food lacks.<br>
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<br>"Our biodiesel originates from crushing cotton seeds left over as waste after ginning - the procedure of separating the seeds from raw cotton," stated Taher Zavery, managing director of Zaynagro Industries Ltd, the Kitui-based company producing the biodiesel.<br>
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<br>"We began producing and utilizing it to power our cotton ginning factory in 2011. With increased production, we now utilize it for our trucks, offer it to the United Nations to run a few of their buses - and also to regional farmers for irrigation."<br>
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<br>More than 1,200 [farmers](https://www.businessnews.com.au/Company/Mission-NewEnergy) in Kitui have actually so far purchased [biodiesel](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159352/mission-newenergy-debt-free-focused-on-biofuel-joint-venture-60797.html) pumps for watering as part of an initiative introduced by Zaynagro in 2015, stated Zavery.<br>
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<br>DRY RIVER BEDS<br>
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<br>Climate change is taking a toll across east Africa and progressively irregular weather is ending up being commonplace in nations such as Kenya, Somalia, Uganda and Ethiopia, leading to lower rains.<br>
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<br>The repeating dry spells are destroying crops and pastures and are starving animals - pushing countless individuals in the Horn of Africa to the verge of severe hunger.<br>
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<br>The number of Kenyans in requirement of food aid in March surged by nearly 70 percent over a duration of eight months to 1.1 million, mainly due to poor rains, according to federal government figures.<br>
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<br>With almost half Kenya's 47 counties stated to have a major shortage of rain, humanitarian agencies are cautioning of [increased cravings](https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/51278-86) in the months ahead.<br>
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<br>"Only light rainfall is anticipated through June ... and this is not anticipated to alleviate drought in affected locations of Kenya and Somalia," said the Famine Early [Warning Systems](https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/ipos/overview?dealId=804419-65608) Network in its newest report.<br>
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<br>"Well below-average crop production, poor livestock body conditions, and increased local food rates are anticipated, which will lower poor homes' access to food."<br>
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<br>In Kitui's Kyuso location, the signs are currently obvious.<br>
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<br>Rivers, water pans and dams are drying up as an outcome of the extended dry spell.<br>
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<br>Villagers suffer trekking longer ranges - in some cases more than 10 km (6 miles) with their donkeys laden with empty jerry cans searching for water.<br>
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<br>Small-scale farmers, the majority of whom are dependent on rain-fed farming, talk about strategies to offer their goats to make ends satisfy if the is poor.<br>
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<br>BATTLING DROUGHT WITH [BIODIESEL](https://biodieselmagazine.com/articles/felda-global-buys-missions-kuantan-port-plant-for-11-5-million-9053)<br>
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<br>But not all Kitui's farmers are stressed.<br>
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<br>A little but growing number are shedding their concern of reliance on the weather condition - and investing in watering systems powered by Zaynagro's cotton seed biodiesel through a pay-as-you-go scheme introduced more than three years earlier.<br>
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<br>Neighbouring farmers unite to purchase the [irrigation](https://www.energy-xprt.com/companies/mission-newenergy-limited-36048) system - that includes the biodiesel pump, 12 metres of pipes and 10 litres of biodiesel - at costs beginning from 32,000 shillings, depending on the size of the pump.<br>
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<br>The farmers make an initial payment, then pay interest-free monthly instalments until the overall is paid off. They buy the [biodiesel](https://www.abnnewswire.net/companies/en/31347/%E0%B8%9A%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%A9%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%97-Mission-NewEnergy-%E0%B8%88%E0%B8%B3%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%94.html/4) to run the pumps from Zaynagro at 80 shillings a litre.<br>
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<br>Farmer Alex Babu Kitheka, 39, said the [biodiesel](https://www.abnnewswire.net/companies/en/31347/%E0%B8%9A%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%A9%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%97-Mission-NewEnergy-%E0%B8%88%E0%B8%B3%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%94.html/4) pump enabled him to irrigate a bigger portion of his [one-acre](https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/company/MNELF:US) plot, where he grows a range of vegetables consisting of maize, tomatoes, spinach and sweet potatoes.<br>
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<br>"With a diesel pump, maize yields were lower and I would get 15,000 shillings in 3 months. With the biodiesel pump, I can make 45,000 shillings," stated Alex Babu Kitheka, standing near his plot in Ilangilo town, 40 km (25 miles) from Kitui town.<br>
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<br>CIRCULAR ECONOMY<br>
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<br>Other [farmers](https://forest500.org/rankings/companies/mission-newenergy-limited) indicate the scheme as a significant benefit in assisting improve their output.<br>
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<br>"The instalment plan is great. Most farmers do not have the cash and can not easily get a loan to buy a pump like this," said Maurice Kitheka Munyoki, 41, as he stood next to his blue biodiesel pump.<br>
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<br>"Having a plan like this assists us a lot. Our yields are good which implies we can pay off the expense of the pump slowly in percentages, and have money left over to pay the school costs."<br>
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<br>Zaynagro's initiative is still in its early phases, with few farmers having repaid the complete cost of the pumps.<br>
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<br>But such [biofuel](https://www.investing.com/equities/mission-newenergy-ltd-company-profile) schemes are promising since they produce a circular economy by turning waste to [biofuel](https://www.zoominfo.com/c/mission-newenergy/346542889) for revenue, said Sanjoy Sanyal, senior associate for Clean Energy Finance at the World Resources Institute.<br>
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<br>The simplicity of the model - easy-to-use, robust innovation, ensured supply of [biodiesel](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/mission-newenergy) integrated with a pay-as-you-go scheme - might assist amaze rural Africa, he said.<br>
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<br>"There is a mosaic of sustainable energy choices worldwide. The crucial problem is testing concepts and approaches in a collaborative style," stated Sanyal.<br>
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<br>"Other cotton ginning factories in the area must attempt and gain from this experiment. Banks need to start experimenting with loans to groups of farmers. International donors and investors require to support experimentation."<br>
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<br>($1 = 101.3000 Kenyan shillings) (Reporting by Nita Bhalla @nitabhalla, Editing by Claire Cozens. Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, [women's](https://www.abnnewswire.net/companies/en/31347/%E0%B8%9A%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%A9%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%97-Mission-NewEnergy-%E0%B8%88%E0%B8%B3%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%94.html/4) and LGBT+ rights, human trafficking, property rights and climate modification. Visit http://news.trust.org)<br>
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