James, a daily farmer in Kiambu County, Kenya

CASE STUDY

James, a daily farmer in Kiambu County, Kenya

                In 2012, James was farming rabbits. He has several of them till a time when a disease attacked many and he almost lost all of them. The few he managed to save were sold and later he bought a calf. After grazing it for a year, it needed a bull. He contacted a nearby A.I. expert to render his cow AI services. After nine months, a calf. James was now a registered seller of milk to the nearby daily factory in 2014.

               After selling milk for a whole year, James had made his account relatively rich. He approached his bank for a loan and bought another cow, hybrid, that he could milk 35 liters. By this time, he was selling a total of about 50 liters. Guess what he was making?

-        1 liter = KES.35

-        50*35= KES.1, 750 a day.

-        1750*30= KES.52,500 a month

His two cows were consuming KES. 210 a day

-        1750-110= KES.1,540 (his profit)

-        1540*30= KES. 46,200 (monthly profit)

                After repaying that loan, in 2015, he took yet another, to add another cow. This time, he bought a higher grade that could give him 42 liters. So, in total, he was now selling about 92 liters.

-        1 liter = KES.38 (had increased)

-        92*38= KES.3,496 a day

-        3220*30= KES. 96,600 a month.

Three cows were consuming a total of KES.410

-        3496-410= KES.3,086 (his profit)

-        3486*30= KES.92,580 (monthly profit)

-        This amounts to KES.  1, 110, 960 a yearly profit

               With this he was no doubt able to repay his loan fully. He also admitted that he was adding other cows in his shed. And guess his age? A youth of 26

Agriculture is always a better venture, provided you know where you are venturing- do research.

“A form of protectionism should be enforced at a national level, at least on strategic areas such as agriculture” – Martin Marechal-Le-Pen, French politician

*** Agribusiness success tips ***

Ø  Put a working strategy. Decide where to venture.

Ø  Always grow. Keep increasing.

Ø  Save in banks. This will build your credit-worthiness.

Ø  Take a loan when you are investing. Make sure your investment pays well.