Karakuta Fresh Produce has commissioned a 7,500 tonnes packhouse for grading and packing avocados grown on its 180 acres of farm and aggregated collection from 1,500 farmers. The packhouse was unveiled in Nairobi by Equity Group Managing Director and CEO Dr. James Mwangi and the Karakuta CEO Grace Ngugi. The occasion was graced by Spanish Embassy’s economic and commercial office market analyst Enrique Alvarez and officials from government agencies and avocado value chain associations. “I am truly honoured to be invited to the commissioning of the Karakuta packhouse which has been achieved not only because of the visionary leadership, but also the bold step taken by the company to transform Kenya’s agricultural value chain,” said Dr. Mwangi.
Partnership
He thanked Karakuta CEO and her family for realizing their aspirations through partnerships with Equity for financing, Israel for the packing plant and Spain for the market that absorbs the bulk of Karakuta produce. The packing machine financed by Equity is one of the fifty two in Kenya, forty eight of which are imported from Israel.
A director at the Horticultural Crops Directorate Dr Christine Chesaro challenged the subsector to seek emerging markets that are looking for volumes but also want consistency of quantity and quality. “Some of the challenges we have are meeting quality consistently and having a machine like Karakuta ensures quality is not compromised,” she said.
The Avocado Exporters Association of Kenya Chief Executive Officer Joseph Wagurah reiterated similar sentiments saying 70% of the fruit is grown by smallholder farmers making it difficult to maintain quality required by markets. “These farmers should be in groups which are easier to manage – they should agree when to plant and when to spray and the quantity of chemicals to use in order to ensure that our produce doesn’t exceed the specified maximum residue levels.”
The Karakuta CEO narrated how she took a step of faith to play in a male-dominated space, expecting to see quantum impact in spite of the challenges in the sub-sector. “I wanted to be in a space where I can start as a small holder fruits farmer and scale up to be in the avocado subsector. Back then, Kenya was struggling with being the largest producer of avocados but not exporting much. That prompted me to establish a model farm as a starting point to address issues of consistency, quality and working seamlessly with small holder farmers,” she said.
Ecosystem
Today, Karakuta has established an ecosystem of thousands of avocado farmers in Kiambu, Nyeri, Kirinyaga and Meru who work with aggregators to deliver their produce marketed for onward transmission to export markets. “The aggregators have built an infrastructure through social capital for trust to ensure farmers don’t lack inputs for their produce to meet market quality and quantity,” she said adding that the facility financed by Equity is a platform for transformation of the thousands of people who depend on the packhouse for their livelihood.
Dr Mwangi noted that like Equity, the company has grown by leaps and bounds having produced eight containers of avocados in its first year of harvest and jumping to eighteen the following year. It projects to more than triple the production to sixty containers in 2025. Dr. Mwangi further highlighted the need for the agricultural sector to focus on value-addition. He hailed Karakuta for solving the challenge of quality and reliability which is what export markets desire.
