diff --git a/Cotton-Waste-Biofuel-Powers-Farmers-to-Fight-Drought-In-Kenya.md b/Cotton-Waste-Biofuel-Powers-Farmers-to-Fight-Drought-In-Kenya.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..3294202 --- /dev/null +++ b/Cotton-Waste-Biofuel-Powers-Farmers-to-Fight-Drought-In-Kenya.md @@ -0,0 +1,40 @@ +
By Nita Bhalla
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KITUI, Kenya, June 6 ([Thomson Reuters](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) Foundation) - Kenyan farmer Abel Mutie Mathoka thought it must be a joke when he was informed he could irrigate his [drought-hit crops](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/) more inexpensively, cleanly and effectively utilizing a pump fuelled by cotton waste.
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"Who could believe it's possible to make a fuel much 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.
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"But it works," he stated, strolling over to a neighboring tree and plucking a big green pawpaw. "Irrigation with this biodiesel water pump has actually assisted me get higher yields, specifically during dry spell periods."
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Mathoka said his profits had actually doubled in the 2 years he has been pumping water using biodiesel, which is both more efficient and 20 shillings ($0.20) per litre cheaper than routine diesel.
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The biodiesel he is utilizing is not just good news for him - it is likewise good news for the world.
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Unlike a lot of biofuels, which are obtained from crops such as maize, sugarcane, soybean, rapeseed and [jatropha curcas](https://forest500.org/rankings/companies/mission-newenergy-limited), it is made from a by-product of the cotton-making process.
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That suggests that in addition to being cleaner and cheaper than regular fuel, it is more [sustainable](https://www.investing.com/equities/mission-newenergy-ltd-company-profile) than other biofuels since no extra land is needed to produce it.
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From Brazil to Indonesia, the rush to cultivate [biofuel](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) crops has actually driven forest communities off their land and pressed farmers to switch from crops-for-food to more lucrative crops-for-fuel - worsening food lacks.
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"Our biodiesel comes from crushing cotton seeds left over as waste after ginning - the procedure of separating the seeds from raw cotton," said Taher Zavery, managing director of Zaynagro Industries Ltd, the Kitui-based company producing the [biodiesel](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/mission-newenergy).
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"We started 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 some of their buses - and likewise to regional farmers for irrigation."
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More than 1,200 farmers in Kitui have up until now [purchased biodiesel](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/) pumps for watering as part of an initiative introduced by Zaynagro in 2015, said Zavery.
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DRY RIVER BEDS
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Climate modification is taking a toll throughout east Africa and increasingly unpredictable weather condition is ending up being commonplace in [nations](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/) such as Kenya, Somalia, Uganda and Ethiopia, leading to lower rains.
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The recurring dry spells are destroying crops and pastures and are [starving animals](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/mission-newenergy) [- pressing](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/) millions of individuals in the Horn of Africa to the verge of extreme cravings.
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The variety of Kenyans in [requirement](https://www.investing.com/equities/mission-newenergy-ltd-company-profile) of food help in March rose by nearly 70 percent over a period of 8 months to 1.1 million, mostly due to poor rains, according to federal government figures.
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With practically half Kenya's 47 counties declared to have a serious scarcity of rain, humanitarian companies are alerting of increased hunger in the months ahead.
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"Only light rains is forecast through June ... and this is not anticipated to minimize drought in affected locations of Kenya and Somalia," said the Famine Early Warning Systems Network in its most current report.
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"Well below-average crop production, bad livestock body conditions, and increased local food rates are expected, which will reduce poor families' access to food."
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In Kitui's Kyuso area, the indications are currently evident.
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Rivers, [water pans](https://www.zoominfo.com/c/mission-newenergy/346542889) and dams are drying up as an outcome of the prolonged drought.
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Villagers suffer travelling longer distances - sometimes more than 10 km (6 miles) with their donkeys loaded with empty jerry cans looking for water.
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[Small-scale](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) farmers, many of whom depend on rain-fed agriculture, discuss plans to sell their goats to make ends satisfy if the harvest is poor.
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BATTLING DROUGHT WITH [BIODIESEL](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/mission-newenergy)
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But not all Kitui's farmers are stressed.
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A little but growing number are shedding their concern of dependence on the weather condition - and buying watering systems powered by Zaynagro's cotton seed biodiesel through a pay-as-you-go plan introduced more than three years ago.
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Neighbouring farmers unite to invest in the irrigation system - which includes the biodiesel pump, 12 metres of pipes and 10 litres of biodiesel - at costs beginning with 32,000 shillings, [depending](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159352/mission-newenergy-debt-free-focused-on-biofuel-joint-venture-60797.html) upon the size of the pump.
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The farmers make an initial payment, then pay interest-free monthly instalments until the overall is paid off. They purchase the [biodiesel](https://www.google.com/search?kgmid=/m/0cqd_rb) to run the pumps from Zaynagro at 80 shillings a litre.
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Farmer Alex Babu Kitheka, 39, stated the biodiesel pump permitted him to irrigate a larger portion of his one-acre plot, where he grows a range of vegetables including maize, tomatoes, spinach and sweet potatoes.
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"With a diesel pump, maize yields were lower and I would get 15,000 shillings in three months. With the biodiesel pump, I can earn 45,000 shillings," stated Alex Babu Kitheka, standing near his plot in Ilangilo village, 40 km (25 miles) from Kitui town.
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CIRCULAR ECONOMY
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Other farmers point to the scheme as a [major benefit](https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/51278-86) in helping their output.
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"The instalment plan is good. Most farmers do not have the cash and can not easily get a loan to purchase a pump like this," stated Maurice Kitheka Munyoki, 41, as he stood next to his blue [biodiesel](https://www.google.com/search?kgmid=/m/0cqd_rb) pump.
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"Having a plan like this assists us a lot. Our yields are excellent which implies we can settle the cost of the pump slowly in little amounts, and have cash left over to pay the school charges."
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Zaynagro's initiative is still in its early phases, with couple of farmers having repaid the full expense of the pumps.
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But such [biofuel](https://stocktwits.com/symbol/MNEL) schemes are promising due to the fact that they produce a circular economy by turning waste to [biofuel](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159346/mission-newenergy-delivers-maiden-biodiesel-production-to-global-oil-major-24476.html) for earnings, stated Sanjoy Sanyal, senior associate for Clean Energy Finance at the World Resources Institute.
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The simplicity of the model - easy-to-use, robust innovation, ensured supply of biodiesel integrated with a pay-as-you-go scheme - could assist amaze rural Africa, he said.
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"There is a mosaic of sustainable energy alternatives on the planet. The essential concern is checking concepts and techniques in a collective style," said Sanyal.
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"Other cotton ginning factories in the area should attempt and gain from this experiment. Banks must start explore loans to groups of farmers. International donors and financiers need to support experimentation."
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($1 = 101.3000 Kenyan shillings) (Reporting by Nita Bhalla @nitabhalla, Editing by [Claire Cozens](https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/company/MNELF:US). Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's and LGBT+ rights, human trafficking, residential or commercial property rights and environment modification. Visit http://news.trust.org)
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