Add Cotton Waste Biofuel Powers Farmers to Eliminate Drought In Kenya

Cotton-Waste-Biofuel-Powers-Farmers-to-Eliminate-Drought-In-Kenya.md

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+<br>By Nita Bhalla<br>
+<br>KITUI, Kenya, June 6 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Kenyan farmer Abel Mutie Mathoka believed it should be a joke when he was informed he might irrigate his drought-hit crops more inexpensively, cleanly and effectively utilizing a pump [sustained](https://www.investing.com/equities/mission-newenergy-ltd-company-profile) by cotton waste.<br>
+<br>"Who could believe it's possible to make a fuel better than diesel from cotton seeds? I didn't!" laughed Mathoka, crouching down to examine the watermelons on his 10-acre (four-hectare) [shared plot](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1463471/000165495419013063/R31.htm) in Ituri town in Kenya's southeast Kitui county.<br>
+<br>"But it works," he stated, strolling over to a nearby tree and plucking a large green pawpaw. "Irrigation with this [biodiesel](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/) water pump has assisted me get greater yields, especially during drought durations."<br>
+<br>Mathoka said his earnings had doubled in the 2 years he has actually been pumping water using biodiesel, which is both more efficient and 20  ($0.20) per litre less expensive than routine diesel.<br>
+<br>The [biodiesel](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/mission-newenergy) he is utilizing is not just good news for him - it is likewise excellent news for the world.<br>
+<br>Unlike a lot of biofuels, which are originated from crops such as maize, sugarcane, soybean, rapeseed and [jatropha](https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/51278-86), it is made from a by-product of the cotton-making procedure.<br>
+<br>That implies that as well as being cleaner and cheaper than routine fuel, it is more sustainable than other biofuels due to the fact that no additional land is needed to produce it.<br>
+<br>From Brazil to Indonesia, the rush to cultivate [biofuel](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/mission-newenergy) crops has driven forest neighborhoods off their land and pushed farmers to switch from crops-for-food to more [lucrative crops-for-fuel](https://www.energy-xprt.com/companies/mission-newenergy-limited-36048) - worsening food lacks.<br>
+<br>"Our biodiesel originates from squashing cotton seeds left over as waste after ginning - the process of separating the seeds from raw cotton," stated Taher Zavery, [handling](https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/51278-86) director of Zaynagro Industries Ltd, the Kitui-based company producing the [biodiesel](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/).<br>
+<br>"We started producing and utilizing it to power our cotton ginning factory in 2011. With increased production, we now utilize it for our trucks, sell it to the United Nations to run some of their buses - and also to regional farmers for irrigation."<br>
+<br>More than 1,200 farmers in Kitui have actually so far invested in [biodiesel](https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-178469/company/) pumps for watering as part of an effort introduced by Zaynagro in 2015, said Zavery.<br>
+<br>DRY RIVER BEDS<br>
+<br>Climate change is taking a toll throughout east Africa and significantly irregular weather condition is becoming commonplace in nations such as Kenya, Somalia, Uganda and Ethiopia, resulting in lower rainfall.<br>
+<br>The repeating dry spells are destroying crops and [pastures](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159352/mission-newenergy-debt-free-focused-on-biofuel-joint-venture-60797.html) and are [starving animals](https://www.investing.com/equities/mission-newenergy-ltd-company-profile) - pushing millions of individuals in the Horn of Africa to the brink of severe appetite.<br>
+<br>The number of Kenyans in need of food help in March surged by nearly 70 percent over a period of eight months to 1.1 million, largely due to poor rains, according to federal government figures.<br>
+<br>With nearly half Kenya's 47 counties declared to have a major scarcity of rain, humanitarian firms are cautioning of increased cravings in the months ahead.<br>
+<br>"Only light rainfall is forecast through June ... and this is not expected to relieve drought in impacted areas of Kenya and Somalia," said the Famine Early Warning Systems Network in its most current report.<br>
+<br>"Well below-average crop production, bad livestock body conditions, and increased regional food prices are anticipated, which will minimize poor households' access to food."<br>
+<br>In Kitui's Kyuso location, the indications are already obvious.<br>
+<br>Rivers, water pans and dams are drying up as an outcome of the prolonged drought.<br>
+<br>Villagers suffer travelling longer ranges - sometimes more than 10 km (6 miles) with their donkeys packed with empty jerry cans looking for water.<br>
+<br>Small-scale farmers, the majority of whom are reliant on rain-fed farming, discuss strategies to sell their goats to make ends fulfill if the harvest is poor.<br>
+<br>BATTLING DROUGHT WITH BIODIESEL<br>
+<br>But not all Kitui's farmers are stressed.<br>
+<br>A little but growing number are shedding their problem of reliance on the weather - and buying irrigation systems powered by Zaynagro's cotton seed [biodiesel](https://biodieselmagazine.com/articles/felda-global-buys-missions-kuantan-port-plant-for-11-5-million-9053) through a pay-as-you-go plan introduced more than 3 years earlier.<br>
+<br>Neighbouring farmers unite to buy the irrigation system - that includes the biodiesel pump, 12 metres of pipelines and 10 litres of biodiesel - at costs beginning with 32,000 shillings, depending upon the size of the pump.<br>
+<br>The farmers make an initial payment, then pay interest-free regular monthly instalments till the total is paid off. They purchase the [biodiesel](https://www.zoominfo.com/c/mission-newenergy/346542889) to run the pumps from Zaynagro at 80 shillings a litre.<br>
+<br>Farmer Alex Babu Kitheka, 39, stated the [biodiesel](https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-178469/company/) pump allowed him to irrigate a bigger part of his one-acre plot, where he grows a variety of vegetables consisting of maize, tomatoes, spinach and [sweet potatoes](https://www.zoominfo.com/c/mission-newenergy/346542889).<br>
+<br>"With a diesel pump, maize yields were lower and I would get 15,000 shillings in three months. With the biodiesel pump, I can make 45,000 shillings," said Alex Babu Kitheka, standing near his plot in Ilangilo village, 40 km (25 miles) from Kitui town.<br>
+<br>CIRCULAR ECONOMY<br>
+<br>Other farmers point to the scheme as a significant [advantage](https://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/ASX:MBT/Mission-NewEnergy-Ltd) in assisting improve their output.<br>
+<br>"The instalment plan is excellent. Most farmers don't have the money and can not quickly get a loan to purchase a pump like this," said Maurice Kitheka Munyoki, 41, as he stood beside his blue [biodiesel](https://biodieselmagazine.com/articles/felda-global-buys-missions-kuantan-port-plant-for-11-5-million-9053) pump.<br>
+<br>"Having a scheme like this assists us a lot. Our yields are great which means we can pay off the cost of the pump slowly in little quantities, and have money left over to pay the school fees."<br>
+<br>Zaynagro's initiative is still in its early phases, with couple of farmers having repaid the complete cost of the pumps.<br>
+<br>But such biofuel schemes are [appealing](https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/company/MNELF:US) since they [produce](https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/51278-86) a [circular economy](https://forest500.org/rankings/companies/mission-newenergy-limited) by turning waste to biofuel for profit, said Sanjoy Sanyal, senior partner for Clean Energy Finance at the World Resources Institute.<br>
+<br>The simplicity of the design - user friendly, robust innovation, ensured supply of biodiesel combined with a pay-as-you-go plan - might assist amaze rural Africa, he stated.<br>
+<br>"There is a mosaic of sustainable energy options worldwide. The essential problem is testing concepts and techniques in a collaborative style," said Sanyal.<br>
+<br>"Other cotton ginning factories in the region ought to try and discover from this experiment. Banks need to begin explore loans to groups of farmers. International donors and financiers require to support experimentation."<br>
+<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 and LGBT+ rights, human trafficking, home rights and climate change. Visit http://news.trust.org)<br>