Farmers in Kirinyaga County are reaping big from a new seedlings propagation centre, which is delivering quality, disease-free and affordable planting materials previously sourced from costly private producers. The Seedlings Propagation Centre at Kangai ward which became operational last year has greatly enhanced access to certify crop for planting and helped horticulture farmers reduce cost of production. The centre, established under Governor Anne Waiguru’s Wezesha Kirinyaga programme, has a capacity to produce up to 400,000 seedlings for crops such as tomatoes, cabbages, kales, spinach and African night-shade. Waiguru said that the center is one of the various projects aimed at boosting horticulture production especially tomatoes whose production has increased from 46,000 tons in 2017 to 116,000 tons in 2022, earning farmers approximately Ksh 6.9 billion annually. While undertaking routine production assessment at the Centre, the County Executive Committee Member for Agriculture, Livestock, Veterinary and Fisheries, Dr. John Gachara, said that the facility was established to address challenges farmers have faced in accessing clean and quality planting materials. “Getting clean planting materials has been one of the key challenges for horticulture farmers. This particular centre ensures that our farmers get the correct materials which are clean and without disease, so that we...
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