The Laikipia Produce and
Marketing Co-operative Society on November 25, 2015 received a maize sheller
from the Eastern African Grain Council (EAGC). Representative from Arid
Lands Information Network (ALIN) witnessed the handover by EAGC at the cooperative store in
Sipili town, Ol-Moran Ward.
The EAGC support is
towards enhancing the capacity of the cooperative towards managing members and
other smallholder farmer’s cereal produce during shelling.
The support is also
towards ensuring that the cooperative becomes a village aggregation centre.
This will enable the cooperative to buy cereals in bulk from members and then
distribute and sell them to schools and other structured markets.
 |
| Maize sheller donated by East African Grain Council |
Speaking during the
handover, Mr. Kipyegon Kipkemei from EAGC urged the group to utilize the
equipment by doing business with it and ensuring members
of the cooperative are the ultimate beneficiaries.
“The maize sheller will
be co-owned between the cooperative and EAGC for a period of three years. After
that duration, we will decide whether to leave it to the cooperative or give it
to another group,” said Mr. Kipyegon.
The maize sheller is
worth Kshs. 65,000. It has a capacity of 6.5-horse power and can therefore
shell 20-25 bags per hour. The tank can hold 3 litres of petrol. Other
beneficiaries included Ndurumo Cereal Bank, Sipili Cereal Bank, Ol-Moran Cereal
Bank and Muhotetu Grain Bank.
Shelling is an important
post-harvest activity in maize as it reduces post-harvest losses. Use of
shelling machine reduces breakage of cereals and deterioration, as it is
faster.
Formed in 2013, the
cooperative emerged from the work undertaken by ALIN through Ng’arua Maarifa
Centre with the support of the Ford Foundation’s Expanding Livelihoods for Poor
Households Initiative (ELOPHI).
Its mandate is mainly to aggregate the farming
communities by pooling them together and empowering them to take control of
their farm’s enterprises, aggregation of farm produce and collective marketing
to enhance their bargaining power and profit margins
