Add Cotton Waste Biofuel Powers Farmers to Combat 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 believed it should be a joke when he was [informed](https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/ipos/overview?dealId=804419-65608) he might water his drought-hit crops more inexpensively, easily and effectively utilizing a pump fuelled by cotton waste.<br>
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<br>"Who could think it's possible to make a fuel much better than diesel from cotton seeds? I didn't!" chuckled Mathoka, bending down to inspect the watermelons on his 10-acre (four-hectare) shared plot in Ituri village in [Kenya's southeast](https://www.businessnews.com.au/Company/Mission-NewEnergy) Kitui county.<br>
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<br>"But it works," he stated, walking over to a close-by tree and plucking a big green pawpaw. "Irrigation with this biodiesel water pump has helped me get higher yields, particularly during dry spell durations."<br>
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<br>Mathoka stated his earnings had doubled in the two years he has been pumping water using biodiesel, which is both more [efficient](https://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/ASX:MBT/Mission-NewEnergy-Ltd) and 20 shillings ($0.20) per litre less expensive than regular diesel.<br>
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<br>The [biodiesel](https://biodieselmagazine.com/articles/felda-global-buys-missions-kuantan-port-plant-for-11-5-million-9053) he is utilizing is not simply good news for him - it is likewise excellent news for the planet.<br>
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<br>Unlike a lot of biofuels, which are stemmed from crops such as maize, sugarcane, soybean, rapeseed and [jatropha curcas](https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/ipos/overview?dealId=804419-65608), it is made from a byproduct of the cotton-making procedure.<br>
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<br>That implies that in addition to being cleaner and more affordable than routine fuel, it is more sustainable than other biofuels because no additional land is needed to produce it.<br>
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<br>From Brazil to Indonesia, the rush to cultivate [biofuel](https://www.energy-xprt.com/companies/mission-newenergy-limited-36048) crops has driven forest [neighborhoods](https://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/ASX:MBT/Mission-NewEnergy-Ltd) off their land and pushed farmers to change from crops-for-food to more rewarding crops-for-fuel - exacerbating food shortages.<br>
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<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 director of Zaynagro Industries Ltd, the Kitui-based business producing the biodiesel.<br>
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<br>"We started producing and using 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 likewise to regional farmers for watering."<br>
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<br>More than 1,200 farmers in Kitui have up until now purchased biodiesel pumps for watering as part of an initiative introduced by Zaynagro in 2015, stated Zavery.<br>
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<br>[DRY RIVER](https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/51278-86) BEDS<br>
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<br>[Climate modification](https://stocktwits.com/symbol/MNEL) is taking a toll throughout east Africa and progressively erratic weather is becoming commonplace in nations such as Kenya, Somalia, Uganda and Ethiopia, resulting in lower rains.<br>
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<br>The are damaging crops and pastures and are starving animals - pushing countless people in the Horn of Africa to the verge of extreme hunger.<br>
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<br>The variety of Kenyans in requirement of food aid in March rose by almost 70 percent over a duration of 8 months to 1.1 million, mainly due to bad rains, according to government figures.<br>
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<br>With practically half Kenya's 47 counties declared to have a severe scarcity of rain, humanitarian companies are cautioning of increased cravings in the months ahead.<br>
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<br>"Only light rains is anticipated through June ... and this is not anticipated to relieve drought in affected areas of Kenya and Somalia," stated the Famine Early Warning Systems Network in its newest report.<br>
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<br>"Well below-average crop production, poor livestock body conditions, and increased regional food costs are anticipated, which will lower poor households' access to food."<br>
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<br>In Kitui's Kyuso area, the indications are already obvious.<br>
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<br>Rivers, water pans and dams are drying up as an outcome of the extended drought.<br>
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<br>Villagers experience travelling longer ranges - in some cases more than 10 km (6 miles) with their [donkeys laden](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1463471/000165495419013063/R31.htm) with empty jerry cans in search of water.<br>
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<br>Small-scale farmers, the majority of whom are dependent on rain-fed agriculture, talk about strategies to sell their goats to make ends meet if the harvest 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 worried.<br>
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<br>A small but growing number are shedding their burden of reliance on the weather - and [purchasing watering](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159346/mission-newenergy-delivers-maiden-biodiesel-production-to-global-oil-major-24476.html) 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 launched more than three years earlier.<br>
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<br>Neighbouring farmers unite to buy the [irrigation](https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-178469/company/) system - that includes the biodiesel pump, 12 metres of pipelines and 10 litres of biodiesel - at costs starting from 32,000 shillings, depending on the size of the pump.<br>
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<br>The farmers make a preliminary payment, then pay interest-free regular [monthly instalments](https://forest500.org/rankings/companies/mission-newenergy-limited) till the total is paid off. They buy the biodiesel to run the pumps from Zaynagro at 80 shillings a litre.<br>
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<br>[Farmer Alex](https://www.intelligentinvestor.com.au/shares/asx-mbt/mission-newenergy-limited/share-price) Babu Kitheka, 39, said the [biodiesel](https://www.businessnews.com.au/Company/Mission-NewEnergy) pump [allowed](https://www.energy-xprt.com/companies/mission-newenergy-limited-36048) him to water a larger part of his one-acre plot, where he grows a variety 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 earn 45,000 shillings," said Alex Babu Kitheka, [standing](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159352/mission-newenergy-debt-free-focused-on-biofuel-joint-venture-60797.html) near his plot in Ilangilo village, 40 km (25 miles) from Kitui town.<br>
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<br>CIRCULAR ECONOMY<br>
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<br>Other farmers indicate the plan as a major advantage in assisting improve their output.<br>
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<br>"The instalment plan is good. Most farmers don't have the cash and can not easily get a loan to buy a pump like this," stated Maurice Kitheka Munyoki, 41, as he stood next to his blue biodiesel pump.<br>
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<br>"Having a plan like this helps us a lot. Our yields are great which implies we can pay off the expense of the pump gradually in little quantities, and have money left over to pay the school charges."<br>
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<br>Zaynagro's initiative is still in its early stages, with few farmers having actually paid back the full expense of the pumps.<br>
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<br>But such [biofuel](https://www.energy-xprt.com/companies/mission-newenergy-limited-36048) plans are appealing since they develop a circular economy by turning waste to [biofuel](https://www.investing.com/equities/mission-newenergy-ltd-company-profile) for revenue, said Sanjoy Sanyal, senior partner for Clean Energy Finance at the World Resources Institute.<br>
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<br>The simplicity of the design - easy-to-use, robust innovation, guaranteed supply of biodiesel combined with a pay-as-you-go plan - might assist electrify rural Africa, he stated.<br>
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<br>"There is a mosaic of sustainable energy choices on the planet. The crucial problem is evaluating concepts and techniques in a collective style," said Sanyal.<br>
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<br>"Other cotton ginning factories in the area need to attempt and learn from this experiment. Financial organizations ought to start explore loans to groups of farmers. International donors and financiers need 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 and LGBT+ rights, human trafficking, home rights and climate change. Visit http://news.trust.org)<br>
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