BULB ONIONS AND GARLIC FARMING TRAINING

DAY 18

*DAY 18: WHERE TO SELL YOUR BULB ONIONS AND GARLIC IN KENYA.*

Good Morning Members. Welcome to another day of our *BULB ONIONS & GARLIC
FARMING TRAINING*.

Nearly every meal of the average Kenyan has to have onions as part of the ingredients.

This tells you something about the market out there. There is a high demand for onions!

Onion farming in Kenya is seeing an upward growth. However, there is still a huge room
for improvement. A research conducted by the Food and Agriculture Organization
indicated that Kenya is still lagging behind in terms of producing the red onions.

Not all the onions sold in Kenya are produced by Kenyan farmers. Instead they are
imported to the country from Tanzania.

If the country is relying on imports, it is a clear indication that the country is not in a
place to feed its populations with onions. As such, a lot of efforts have to be geared
towards ensuring that this gap is field.

The shortage is so dire that farmers in oloitoktock, Nyeri, Rumuruti, Emali, Kajiado, and
other onion growing areas, clear their stocks in less than a week of harvest because of
the high demand.

To fill this market demand gap, traders have to go deep into the villages of Tanzania and
Uganda in a frantic search for onions.
Now imagine if you were growing onions on your farm.

Right here in Kenya.

Onion Customers would be rushing to buy the onions from you.

And by giving them what they want, you would be saving Kenyan traders the hustle of
going to a distant land in search of onions.

*What's the Best time to Plant Onions?*

Truth is, onion Farming is very profitable, but timing is key. Maximizing your production
when market demand is high gives the most profits for onion Farming.

However, lack of market information and proper timing combined with lack of proper
skills may reduce your chances of getting good returns.

Many farmers are in denial that we cannot sustain the local onion demand but the truth
is, actually the demand is way too high than we can constantly produce.

This is the reason we face acute shortage in onion supply from late April.

This demands for imports from Ethiopia, Egypt and India to supply the demand, while
Tanzania surplus floods the market in July and August.

This usually flattens the demand curve and pushes the prices to high time lows hence
the local farmer may not feel the profits to the maximum and sometimes it's actually a
loss to the local farmer.
Until a time when we can have local constant supply into the market all year round, it's
best to consider planting your onions to harvest when demand is at the peak.

Another option is applying good farming expertise to maximise production. You could
break even with 15-20 tonnes, selling at the average low of 40 Bob per kg.

Start your nursery this August and harvest in Dec-Jan. Put another patch in Dec to
Harvest in May-June. Here prices range from 55-90 per kg.

Remember End Jan-Feb and Early March there is surplus from Nyeri. However the
prices are average and you will still break even. At least 50-55 per kg.

There is a similarity of onion seasons between Kenya and Tanzania with long rains
related supplies in the months between July and September.

However, Tanzania has a comparative advantage in the months of May, June and
October to December.

In Kenya, onions are grown in West Pokot, Isiolo, Kimana, Mai Mahiu, Nyeri and
Kinangop. In Tanzania, they are grown in Mang’ola, Singinda, Njombe, Iringa and
Morogoro.

Tanzania onions sell like hot cake in Kenya and are often referred to as the “red gold” by
traders. They are preferred over the local onions in markets even by consumers.
Kenyan onion farmers often complain that Tanzania onions flood the market leading to
losses.

But what is so special with Tanzania onions?

I spoke to Agriculture expert Henry Kinyua who was at one time the Director for
Agriculture Markets at the President’s Delivery Bureau in Tanzania.

“With current East African integration we cannot stop onions from Tanzania since
nothing stops our farmers from selling in Kenya,” he says.

“The main issue is managing the harvesting period and timing of the market (a practice
called curing). When onions are ready for harvesting, farmers are supposed to cut the
leafy part and leave the onions in the field for a minimum period of two weeks.

Alternatively, they can harvest and spread the bulbs out in the sun. This enables the
bulbs to dry naturally thus increasing their shelf life.

Tanzanian and Ethiopian farmers have perfected this and that is how they took over
East African markets. The onions are lighter but they can be stored for a long time then
sold when the price is high,” he adds.

On the other hand, Kinyua observes that Kenyan farmers are quick to sell as soon as
harvesting takes place. And since they sell by kilos, they almost always skip this
practice to sell their onions when bulbs weigh heaviest.

“Their produce, however, has a very short shelf life such that if they are placed
alongside Tanzanian or Ethiopian onions, they cannot sell even if sold at a lower price.

Specifically in Tanzania, most onions are grown in an area called Mang’ola in Karatu
district not far from Arusha. The area has a conducive climate and is relatively warm
and onions in the region are not seriously affected by fungal diseases so the cost of
disease control is lower than that of farmers from Endarasha in Nyeri for instance.

Additionally, farmers in Mang’ola have also perfected the production of own seeds using
community-based models where specific farmers in a community are trained and
supported to produce seeds technically referred to as QDS ( quality declared seeds)
making their seeds also cheaper from their Kenyan counterparts,” opines Kinyua.

A Kenyan onion farmer can spend up to Ksh.10,000 on seeds only.

Kinyua advises Kenyan onion farmers on market timing.

“Significantly reduce growing crop that will mature in June- July season when Tanzanian
onions flood the market. The best months to have your onions ready for the market is
either January to mid-March and August to September seasons.

Secondly, embrace the practice of curing as farmers must stop this rush to sell wet
onion bulbs,” he says.

The traders I spoke to in various markets including Kangemi, Marigiti in Nairobi and
Karatina collaborate Kinyua’s sentiments saying they prefer Tanzanian onions as they
are mature, well dried, consistent in size and have a long shelf life.

In Mang’ola Tanzania, onions are the leading crop along the fertile Lake Eyasi delta. It is
situated 200 kilometres west of Arusha and it is only 292km from the Namanga border
point with Kenya, which is an advantage to Kenyan traders who flock there in droves to
get the crop.

The area accounts for about one-third of East Africa’s Bombay Red and Red Crole
onions earning Tanzania over TZS 43.2 billion per annum.

Mang’ola Ward of Karatu District is one of the largest producers of onions in East Africa.
The area supplies Kenya, Uganda and South Sudan. The onions also find their way
overseas.

During the harvesting season, hundreds of lorries occupy the area daily as onions are
loaded from the eight villages of Ghorofani, Mbugani, Kisrili, Jumbe Chanda,
Larangareli, Butiama, Malekichanda and Barazani.

Most of the farmers are small scale farmers who sell their produce mostly to the Kenyan
traders. Some large scale farmers, however, prefer to sell their onions personally to
Kenya where they fetch a better price as there are no middlemen involved.
The demand for the onions is so huge such that some Kenyan traders have contracted
farmers in the area to produce for them to ensure they have a steady supply.

The value chain has a lot of beneficiaries from the farmers, transporters, loaders, to
traders. There are two categories of traders- wholesalers who source the onions from
Tanzania and retailers who buy from the wholesalers.

As things stand out now, Tanzania has strongly dominated the onion market in the East
Africa region as the neighbours take notes and scramble for the “red gold”.

Onions in Kenya are like hotcakes. Meaning that they are on-demand to the point of
causing a serious shortage that leads the country to import 50% of this crop.

So this means that if you are an onion farmer in Kenya you will not have a hard time
market your product as the market will be waiting for you.

Nevertheless, some of the available options that an onion farmer in Kenya can explore
include open marketing.

This is where the farmer takes their onions to the open-air markets and especially
during market days.

The farmer makes use of public traffic in market centers to reach out to the intended
customers. Sometimes traders buy from farmers and resell the same in open markets.

This method conveniences farmers because they can bargain for better prices at the
individual level with a customer and even sell at any quantity they want.

Even if you are not an onion farmer, this one simple business can make you earn a
good amount of money. With onion business you have to be an industrious individual
who is willing enough to sacrifice most of his times or rather you can start the business
and employ someone.

This is because you will have to take your onions to open markets and there are many
markets that you can end up moving from one to another from Monday to Friday. Selling
onions in market places is the best since you will be selling one by one.

To Start this business you need at least Ksh.15,000 shillings. Visit places like Chwele in
Rift valley where onions are found in abundance since farmers will sell to you at a
cheaper price per kg. In such places 90 kgs sack of onions roughly cost Ksh.9,000.

On selling your onions in an open market you will sell one at 5 shillings, 15 shillings and
20 shillings depending with the size of the onions. On doing this you can end up making
a huge profit as much as the buying price.

Onion business is Lucrative just avoid selling to business people if you want to make a
good profit for yourself since by doing that you will get less profit.

Passenger vehicles honked incessantly as they piled into Nairobi central business
district, dropping the early birds.

It was about 5.am at Wakulima Market and among the early birds were smallholder
vegetable sellers, also known as mama mbogas.

The traders flocked to the famous fresh produce outlet for their day’s supplies. Soon,
the market was full of the vegetable sellers, handcart pushers, brokers and suppliers of
produce.

Trading had started some minutes earlier after one of the brokers rang a bell.
Our team had gone to the market last week with one of the onion suppliers, who had
brought a pick-up full of the produce.

However, one would have expected that once the bell is rang, as is the tradition, the
buyers would flock the onion supplier for the produce.

But that was not the case. Like the other suppliers, he left his produce with one of the
brokers, who then sold it to the vegetable sellers as he watched.

“That is how business is done here, you have to go through the brokers, who also
determine the prices, sell on your behalf, deduct their charges and give you the rest.

It is a brokers’ paradise here,” said the onion supplier who we cannot name for safety
reasons.

We found out that the brokers’ system at Wakulima (Marikiti) is replicated in every fresh
produce wholesale markets in Nairobi, including Gikomba, Muthurwa and City Park and
in major towns across the country.

“These brokers are a mini-government. They dictate the cost of every commodity, when
to sell, who to buy from and most importantly, they ‘own’ the customers.

In Nairobi, the county government officials have learned to co-exist with them,” said the
supplier.

The system has ensured that the brokers reap the most in the value-chain, with farmers
being the biggest losers.

“Hii Marikiti iko na wenyewe,” Maurice Gikonyo, not his real name, told us.

The broker, who has been dealing in onions for six years, let us into the intricate world
of the agents.

“You cannot come from the farm with your produce and sell here directly to customers,
how will we earn our living?” he posed.

He explained that every farmer or supplier has to surrender their produce to them and
wait for whatever they will be given.
Sometimes, he told us, farm produce has to be transferred to a vehicle ‘known’ by the
brokers to get access into the market.

“If I sell your onions, I earn at least Sh40 per net, and you will pay another Sh40 to the
county government for every net sold, plus the offloading fee,” the broker said.

Therefore, from 200 nets of onions, which is the capacity of a medium-sized truck, a
farmer parts with Sh.16,000, half which goes to the county government and the rest to
the broker.

By selling up to five lorries in a day, Gikonyo makes a tidy sum. Comparably, a farmer
will take home Sh.35,000 from a lorry of onions after subtracting expenses, that include
the broker’s charges.

A 10kg net of onions currently goes for Sh.500.

Not all brokers in the wholesale markets are equal. There are those with the financial
war-chest who can buy farm produce at a dictated price in a single file then later sell it
at double the amount.

And then there are the light-weights like Gikonyo.

Light weight or not, most of the brokers are not your average trader. Some boast of
owning apartments on the outskirts of Nairobi and others drive sports utility vehicles, all
courtesy of their fees.

“Sasa wewe mkulima ukikuja hapa kuuza utauzia nani? Hauna hata customers,” (If you
come here as a farmer, who are you going to sell to when you don’t even know the
customers) quipped Gikonyo, matter of factly.

Jonathan Kiprotich, who grows potatoes and vegetables in Uasin Gishu County, and
has been selling his produce at Wakulima market, has learned how to co-exist with the
brokers.

“I specifically sell my produce through one broker,” he said, adding that the broker has
enabled him sell his produce at good prices even when there is oversupply.
His face lit up with joy when I approached him standing near his car outside Kemri
Estate, off Mbagathi Road in Nairobi, and he welcomed me warmly, inviting me to buy
his produce.

Inside the car boot were onions, several bunches of traditional vegetables, some paw
paws and empty egg trays.

It was about 7.30pm and John Wambua was hoping that he would sell the remaining
produce before calling it a day.

“I sell mainly fresh traditional vegetables like amaranth, kunde and African black
nightshade. I also add eggs, onions, tomatoes and fruits to have variety. This is my
base.”

Wambua, with his wife Juliana Mwende, who farm in Kilimambogo, near Thika, started
trading in groceries from the car boot about three years ago, and are happy with the
practice so far.

In a trend that has caught up with many farmers and traders, car boot trading has
becoming the new way to sell farm produce across the country.
While some of those engaging in the trade are full-time farmers or traders, professionals
having day-time jobs, a car to boot and engaging in farming as a side hustle have joined
the fray.

Those who do not have cars hire one. “I farm on two acres, growing all the vegetables
and fruits that I sell from the car boot. I also keep chickens that provide the eggs I sell,”
said Wambua, adding he works during the week and travels to his farm over the
weekend to pick the produce and supply in Nairobi.

Wambua, as many of those selling the produce from the car boot, switched to the
practice after realizing he would incur losses selling his commodities in county
government markets, which are manned by brokers.

His car further gives him the convenience of delivering farm produce to customers in
different locations.

“When you take your produce at Wakulima market, you have to surrender it to brokers
who dictate prices, sell and give you what they believe you should get. I did this once
and have never gone back. I start selling my produce at 2pm during the weekends and
finish in the evening.”

At Wangige market in Kiambu County, I met George Kiragu sorting onions in the boot of
his van.

The retired banker from Maragua in Murang’a owns the vehicle from where he sells
onions and tomatoes every day.

“I started the business in 2013 shortly before retirement, and have never stopped.”

Kiragu, who is in his 60s, harvests the produce from his six-acre farm in Maragua and
transports the produce to Wangige market.

James Kioko, who operates in Umoja, Dohnholm and Emabakasi estates in Nairobi’s
Eastlands, has been selling onions for the past two years from his truck.

With the vehicle, the trader said he is able to reach as many customers as possible in a
day.
“The secret to making profit when selling from the car boot is to deal in fast-moving
commodities like fresh produce, and then get a strategic spot in the estates where there
is a huge human traffic,” he said, adding one could also sell to mama mbogas if they
want their produce to move faster.

By personally selling his commodities to his customers, the trader says he is able to get
good money, ending up with up to Sh.15,000 a day.

To succeed in the business, he noted that one should know what to sell and where.

“Some groceries have high demand in one area and low demand in others, you need to
do market research to know where to pitch tent and at how much to sell.”

He pays the county government Sh.200 for a full track and Sh.100 when the truck is
half-full every day, just as the other traders in the open air market.

*BUILD RELATIONSHIPS WITH DISTRIBUTORS AND OTHER FARMERS*

Create relationships with other farmers who grow similar crops in your area so that you
can help each other promote their brands and products through shared advertising
efforts.

Farmers can also find a market for their products through people who are already in the
business. To make this work, you need to first build relationships with distributors and
customers to help you sell the products directly from the farm.

Most local retailers and distributors help farmers find a ready market for their products.
This is how most local farmers sell their products.
For example, we have farmers in our remote areas who focus on growing food that is
later sold to distributors or brokers who buy directly from the farm and transport them to
the urban cities.

A produce broker is a salesperson who has access to any seller in the food chain,
including packing houses, processors, agribusinesses, and mid- to large-scale farms.
Typically they work with large-scale farms.

A broker will help arrange the logistics of getting your product from your farm to their
buyer, often taking commissions based on a percentage of the sale. Their success
depends on their reputation and they spend years building relationships.

*Advantages*

*Brokers have relationships with many buyers and can arrange a sale more easily than
the farmer can.

*Brokers generally have a better understanding of the market conditions and prices than
the farmer does.

*Working with a broker allows you to focus on production, rather than sales.

*Brokers can arrange transportation, either from your farm or from a terminal market.

*Considerations*

*Brokers prefer to deal with larger volumes, but it is not a requirement.

*While you can sell a larger quantity, you should expect a lower price per unit.

*Tips for Selling to Produce Distributors*

Check with other growers and get a sense of the broker’s or the brokerage company’s
reputation before you work with them. You want someone with an excellent track record
who comes highly recommended.

Written contracts are preferred, but not standard. However, it’s always a good idea to
have some type of written agreement with the broker outlining price, volume, time
period, and whether the broker is purchasing the product from you or only negotiating a
sale. These documents are critical to protecting both parties if anything goes wrong.
*Key Questions to Ask Yourself*

*Do you know others who have had good experiences with this broker?

*Do you have enough volume to still see a profit after paying a commission to a broker
and selling at wholesale prices?

*Would you rather entrust someone else to sell your products so that you can focus only
on production?

*SUPERMARKETS AND FOOD RETAILERS*

Food retailers are normally interested in locally produced vegetables, as it promises the
freshest product on their shelves, and shows community support.

These markets vary from farm stalls, independent, locally-owned grocery stores to large
grocery chains.

Large chain stores have defined methods of buying in their products and have specific
requirements. It might be challenging to persuade a local chain store to sell your
produce, since purchasing usually requires approval from regional or central
management.

The prices are also likely to be linked to regional prices rather than local prices. High
quality is expected, and produce might be rejected if it is not up to standard at delivery.

The advantage is that a farmer can sell his produce in bulk, on a weekly basis.
Depending on the crops a farmer plants and the size of the farm, a farmer may have to
spend extra time and money on cleaning and packaging as well as branding.
When a farmer is selling his produce at a local produce, remember that the name of the
brand of the supermarket is also at stake. Therefore, farmer’s produce must be fresh
and of good quality.

*WORD-OF-MOUTH ALWAYS WORKS!*

This is definitely the oldest form of marketing and advertising used by businesses since
the world began.

When a customer is happy and satisfied with a product or service, there’s a natural
human tendency that they are likely to share this experience with people in their circle of
trust and influence – family, friends, colleagues, neighbors and sometimes, strangers.

A satisfied customer is one of the most effective marketing and advertising tools a small
business can ever have.

Satisfied customers become foot soldiers, evangelists and advocates for your business.
It is amazing how many of your satisfied customers will go to great lengths to promote,
convince, protect and defend your business outside.

Word-of-mouth is so effective and powerful that many successful business rely solely on
this method to advertise and market their products and services. Network marketing
businesses are a good example.

So, how exactly can your small business grow an army of passionate customers who
will use word-of-mouth advertising to your advantage?

Well, I have a couple of ideas.

The first and most important step is to *sell a product or service that really works and
provides great value to anybody who uses them.* If a product or service delivers on its
promise and does more than what it says, it’s a winner!

Most people buy products or services to solve a problem or satisfy a need. Nothing will
make a customer happier and more satisfied than getting a product that makes a very
challenging problem go away. They will scream your name from the mountain tops!

*Great customer experience.* Most times, it doesn’t really matter how large or
deep-pocketed your competition is. You can grow a successful business on great
customer service.

People like to buy products and services from businesses that treat them with respect.
People love to be given attention and treated well and will always return to enjoy that
beautiful experience again.

Don’t forget, customers spend their hard-earned money on your products. Don’t you
think they deserve a big “Thank you’ with a wide smile on your face?

People hardly forget a great customer experience and will happily tell other people
about it.

*Give your customers a reason to advertise and market your business.* Sometimes,
word-of-mouth advertising doesn’t come automatically; you have to encourage, motivate
or incentivize your customers to do it for you.

Start a referral or reward program for your existing customers. The more people they
refer to you, the more free products, services and discounts they will enjoy. The reward
should be large enough to trigger their interest and make them take action. It’s a
win-win method that always works.

*END OF DAY 18 BULB ONIONS & GARLIC FARMING TRAINING TEACHING

SESSION*
We now come to the end of today`s teaching session.

This Raising Business Capital Training has been organized and brought to you by;

Timothy Angwenyi
Business Consultant
+254701711058 / +254707790744

Justine Nyachieo
Business Man & Mentor
+254754839228 / +254736823440

Feel free to Contact us on Whatsapp or on a Call.