Add Cotton Waste Biofuel Powers Farmers to Eliminate Drought In Kenya

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 <br>By Nita Bhalla<br>
 <br>KITUI, Kenya, June 6 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Kenyan farmer Abel Mutie Mathoka believed it must be a joke when he was informed he could water his drought-hit crops more inexpensively, easily and effectively utilizing a pump fuelled by cotton waste.<br>
 <br>"Who could believe it's possible to make a fuel much better than diesel from cotton seeds? I didn't!" laughed Mathoka, crouching down to inspect the watermelons on his 10-acre (four-hectare) shared plot in Ituri village in Kenya's southeast Kitui county.<br>
 <br>"But it works," he stated, strolling over to a nearby tree and plucking a large [green pawpaw](https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/51278-86). "Irrigation with this [biodiesel](https://www.businessnews.com.au/Company/Mission-NewEnergy) water pump has actually helped me get greater yields, specifically throughout dry spell durations."<br>
 <br>Mathoka stated his profits had doubled in the 2 years he has been pumping water utilizing biodiesel, which is both more efficient and 20 shillings ($0.20) per litre cheaper than regular diesel.<br>
 <br>The biodiesel he is using is not just excellent news for him - it is also good news for the planet.<br>
 <br>Unlike many biofuels, which are derived from crops such as maize, sugarcane, soybean, rapeseed and [jatropha](https://www.google.com/search?kgmid=/m/0cqd_rb), it is made from a by-product of the cotton-making process.<br>
 <br>That implies that in addition to being cleaner and more affordable than routine fuel, it is more sustainable than other biofuels because no extra land is needed to produce it.<br>
 <br>From Brazil to Indonesia, the rush to cultivate [biofuel](https://www.businessnews.com.au/Company/Mission-NewEnergy) crops has driven forest communities off their land and pressed farmers to change from crops-for-food to more successful crops-for-fuel - worsening [food scarcities](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/).<br>
 <br>"Our biodiesel comes from crushing cotton seeds left over as waste after ginning - the process of separating the seeds from raw cotton," said Taher Zavery, handling director of Zaynagro Industries Ltd, the Kitui-based company producing the biodiesel.<br>
 <br>"We began producing and using it to power our cotton ginning factory in 2011. With increased production, we now use it for our trucks, offer it to the United Nations to run some of their buses - and also to regional farmers for watering."<br>
 <br>More than 1,200 farmers in Kitui have actually so far invested in biodiesel pumps for irrigation as part of an initiative released by Zaynagro in 2015, [stated Zavery](https://forest500.org/rankings/companies/mission-newenergy-limited).<br>
 <br>DRY RIVER BEDS<br>
 <br>Climate change is taking a toll across east Africa and [increasingly irregular](https://www.google.com/search?kgmid=/m/0cqd_rb) weather condition is becoming commonplace in nations such as Kenya, Somalia, Uganda and Ethiopia, leading to lower rains.<br>
 <br>The repeating dry spells are ruining crops and pastures and are starving animals - pressing countless individuals in the Horn of Africa to the edge of [severe appetite](https://www.investing.com/equities/mission-newenergy-ltd-company-profile).<br>
 <br>The variety of [Kenyans](https://www.google.com/search?kgmid=/m/0cqd_rb) in requirement of food aid in March rose by almost 70 percent over a period of 8 months to 1.1 million, largely due to poor rains, according to government figures.<br>
 <br>With almost half Kenya's 47 counties declared to have a severe lack of rain, humanitarian agencies are cautioning of increased appetite in the months ahead.<br>
 <br>"Only light rains is forecast through June ... and this is not expected to minimize drought in affected areas of Kenya and Somalia," stated the Famine Early Warning Systems Network in its latest report.<br>
 <br>"Well below-average crop production, poor livestock body conditions, and increased regional food costs are anticipated, which will lower bad households' access to food."<br>
 <br>In Kitui's Kyuso area, the signs are already obvious.<br>
 <br>Rivers, water pans and dams are drying up as a result of the prolonged dry spell.<br>
 <br>Villagers experience trekking longer distances - sometimes more than 10 km (6 miles) with their donkeys packed with empty jerry cans searching for water.<br>
 <br>Small-scale farmers, many of whom depend on [rain-fed](https://www.investing.com/equities/mission-newenergy-ltd-company-profile) farming, talk about plans to sell their goats to make ends satisfy if the harvest is poor.<br>
 <br>BATTLING DROUGHT WITH BIODIESEL<br>
 <br>But not all Kitui's farmers are fretted.<br>
 <br>A little however growing number are shedding their burden of dependence on the weather condition - and buying watering systems powered by Zaynagro's cotton seed [biodiesel](https://www.businessnews.com.au/Company/Mission-NewEnergy) through a pay-as-you-go scheme introduced more than three years ago.<br>
 <br>Neighbouring farmers unite to purchase the watering system - that includes the [biodiesel](https://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/ASX:MBT/Mission-NewEnergy-Ltd) pump, 12 metres of pipes and 10 litres of biodiesel - at costs beginning with 32,000 shillings, [depending](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/) upon the size of the pump.<br>
 <br>The farmers make a preliminary payment, then pay interest-free monthly [instalments](https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/ipos/overview?dealId=804419-65608) up until the total is paid off. They buy the [biodiesel](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/mission-newenergy) to run the pumps from Zaynagro at 80 shillings a litre.<br>
 <br>Farmer Alex Babu Kitheka, 39, said the biodiesel pump allowed him to water a bigger portion of his [one-acre](https://www.investing.com/equities/mission-newenergy-ltd-company-profile) plot, where he grows a range of vegetables including maize, tomatoes, spinach and sweet potatoes.<br>
 <br>"With a diesel pump, maize yields were lower and I would get 15,000 shillings in three months. With the [biodiesel](https://biodieselmagazine.com/articles/felda-global-buys-missions-kuantan-port-plant-for-11-5-million-9053) pump, I can earn 45,000 shillings," said Alex Babu Kitheka, standing near his plot in Ilangilo village, 40 km (25 miles) from [Kitui town](https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-178469/company/).<br>
 <br>CIRCULAR ECONOMY<br>
 <br>Other farmers indicate the plan as a major advantage in assisting enhance their output.<br>
 <br>"The instalment scheme is good. Most farmers do not have the cash and can not quickly get a loan to buy a pump like this," said Maurice Kitheka Munyoki, 41, as he stood beside his blue [biodiesel](https://www.energy-xprt.com/companies/mission-newenergy-limited-36048) pump.<br>
 <br>"Having a scheme like this helps us a lot. Our yields are excellent which indicates we can pay off the cost of the pump gradually in percentages, and have money left over to pay the school charges."<br>
 <br>Zaynagro's effort is still in its early phases, with few farmers having repaid the complete expense of the pumps.<br>
 <br>But such [biofuel](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/mission-newenergy) plans are appealing due to the fact that they create a circular economy by turning waste to [biofuel](https://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/ASX:MBT/Mission-NewEnergy-Ltd) for revenue, said Sanjoy Sanyal, senior partner for Clean Energy Finance at the World Resources Institute.<br>
 <br>The simpleness of the model - easy-to-use, robust innovation, assured supply of biodiesel combined with a pay-as-you-go scheme - might assist electrify rural Africa, he said.<br>
 <br>"There is a mosaic of sustainable energy choices in the world. The essential problem is checking ideas and methods in a collaborative fashion," said Sanyal.<br>
 <br>"Other cotton ginning factories in the region must attempt and gain from this experiment. Banks need to begin try out loans to groups of farmers. International donors and investors require to support experimentation."<br>
 <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,  and LGBT+ rights, human trafficking, property rights and climate change. Visit http://news.trust.org)<br>