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Profarm Africa Ltd:<br />

working with farmers for<br />

improved yields<br />

D. K. Kagwe, Profarm Africa Ltd Managing Direc<strong>to</strong>r<br />

As <strong>the</strong> world<br />

p o p u l a t i o n<br />

surge high,<br />

farmland is<br />

d w i n d l i n g<br />

due <strong>to</strong> many activities that<br />

humankind is engaged on.<br />

Currently, it is estimated that<br />

<strong>the</strong>re are about 7.1 billion<br />

people living on earth. In<br />

eight years <strong>to</strong> <strong>co</strong>me it will have<br />

reached 8 billion ac<strong>co</strong>rding <strong>to</strong><br />

<strong>the</strong> United Nations estimates.<br />

In Kenya, it is estimated that by<br />

2015, <strong>the</strong> population will have<br />

reached 40 million people.<br />

To feed everyone in<br />

<strong>the</strong> <strong>co</strong>untry, it will call for<br />

diversification in farming<br />

methods and practices. Farmers<br />

must improve <strong>the</strong>ir yield per<br />

available unit area. Hybrid<br />

seeds and advanced farming<br />

technology will go a long way<br />

in improving farm yields.<br />

Measures <strong>to</strong> reduce losses<br />

<strong>to</strong> pests and diseases will<br />

also significantly help <strong>the</strong><br />

farmers. Agrochemical experts<br />

are advising <strong>the</strong> farmers <strong>to</strong><br />

embrace new research which<br />

is giving <strong>the</strong> new agricultural<br />

products that are of great<br />

impact on <strong>the</strong>ir yields.<br />

Profarm Africa Ltd, a medium<br />

sized agribusiness enterprise<br />

based in Nairobi, Kenya is<br />

working closely with small and<br />

medium scale farmers in East<br />

Africa <strong>to</strong> provide <strong>the</strong>m with<br />

effective, environmentally safe<br />

products. Focusing mainly on<br />

<strong>co</strong>ffee, grains and horticulture,<br />

<strong>the</strong> firm is promising <strong>to</strong><br />

deliver high quality products<br />

selected from internationally<br />

re<strong>co</strong>gnized manufacturers at<br />

an affordable price.<br />

“Our objective is <strong>to</strong> work<br />

closely with <strong>the</strong> farmers, by<br />

actively promoting Good<br />

Agricultural Practices,” says<br />

Profarm Africa Ltd Managing<br />

Direc<strong>to</strong>r, D. K. Kagwe.<br />

Although small and medium<br />

scale farmers <strong>co</strong>ntributes<br />

<strong>the</strong> largest portion of food<br />

produced in Kenya, knowing<br />

<strong>the</strong> right chemical for use <strong>to</strong><br />

curb certain pests or crop<br />

diseases, can sometimes be<br />

a challenging task <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>m.<br />

Profarm Africa has been<br />

working with <strong>the</strong>m <strong>to</strong> guide<br />

and support <strong>the</strong>m with <strong>the</strong><br />

<strong>co</strong>rrect chemicals for <strong>the</strong><br />

various <strong>co</strong>nditions <strong>the</strong>y face.<br />

Where farmers has been<br />

<strong>co</strong>mplaining of reduced yields,<br />

Profarm Africa Ltd introduced<br />

water soluble fertilizers that can<br />

be dissolved in water easily and<br />

utilized by crops immediately.<br />

They usually <strong>co</strong>ntain Nitrogen-<br />

P h o s p h o r o u s - Po t a s s i u m<br />

(NPK) which has Calcium<br />

and Magnesium, <strong>the</strong> most<br />

known necessary elements for<br />

increased yields and health of<br />

crops.<br />

“The ultimate goal of<br />

fertilizing your crops is <strong>to</strong><br />

supply <strong>the</strong>m with <strong>the</strong> right<br />

amount of nutrients, yet, at <strong>the</strong><br />

same time not <strong>to</strong>xifying <strong>the</strong><br />

soil through over fertilization,”<br />

Kagwe says. He adds, “The<br />

directions for usage, given<br />

on <strong>the</strong> products label, should<br />

be followed ac<strong>co</strong>rdingly <strong>to</strong><br />

achieve maximum results,”<br />

Regardless of <strong>the</strong> watering<br />

equipment used by <strong>the</strong><br />

farmers, <strong>the</strong> fertilizers will stay<br />

in solution form and never<br />

leave trace at <strong>the</strong> bot<strong>to</strong>m of <strong>the</strong><br />

tank. “You will spend less time<br />

and experience no problems<br />

while effectively fertilizing<br />

your plants with our water<br />

soluble speciality fertilizers,”<br />

Kagwe says of <strong>the</strong> products.<br />

Among its wide variety<br />

of water soluble speciality<br />

fertilizers products include,<br />

Profarm Folia+, Profolia<br />

Gold, Profolia POTA, Profarm<br />

CALMAG, Sanorganik,<br />

POTMAG-S and Sangrass.<br />

Profarm Africa’s vision is <strong>to</strong><br />

work with farmers in Africa<br />

and be preferred organization<br />

by agricultural products<br />

researchers, manufacturers<br />

and formula<strong>to</strong>rs in developing,<br />

mar<strong>ke</strong>ting and distributing<br />

brands, technologies and<br />

innovations that optimize<br />

agricultural production and<br />

profitability, improve nutrition<br />

and enhance quality of life for<br />

all.<br />

4<br />

H O R T I C U LT U R A L N E W S I A U G U S T - S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 2

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