K A R I Updates

Publication of the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute July 1997 Number 1

Sorghum helps provide better food security areas of Kenya where rainfall is limited, there is a growing recognition that sorghum has great advantage in providing for food security. Sorghum is indigenous to Kenya, but it lost favour with farmers when maize became the preferred food crop. Now, sorghum is becoming a suitable alternative in many places where maize fails.

In Machakos District, which was hit by the drought of 1996, those who planted sorghum harvested a relatively better crop and fared better than many of their neighbours who planted maize. Pius Mwania and his wife Jane readily bear testimony to this. "Those who planted maize did not get even a single cob" said Mrs. Mwania.

Like many other farmers in the district, the Mwanias grow a sorghum variety developed by the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute called KARI/Mtama-1. The variety was released in 1994 and has been widely accepted in the country. Farmers say it has a sweet taste and can be used for ugali (a moderately hard paste), uji (porridge) and other food products. It can also be blended with wheat flour to make bread and Chapatis, and with the brown-seed varieties such as Seredo (also bred by KARI and recommended for wetter areas) to make ugali and uji.

A leading bakery in Baringo District, Makatiat Ltd, collaborates closely with KARI in the use of KARI/Matama-1 for making bread (15% sorghum flour and 85% wheat flour), cakes and biscuits (50% sorghum flour and 50% wheat flour). In Western Kenya and Nyanza, sorghum is also used extensively as a poultry feed. Farmers have observed that local chickens in the area lay more eggs when they are fed on sorghum. Sorghum ugali is cherished here, especially when it is mixed with cassava flour.

In response to request from local leadership for help on crops that grow well in a drought prone area. Baringo District, KARI established a community-based sorghum adoption project at Cheplambus in the district, an area with many hills and valleys. The poorly distribute rainfall in the area often causes maize crops to fail.

KARI/Mtama-1 was introduced into the area to increase food security and to demonstrate improved crop management techniques and multiply seed. The project started in 1992, and acreage and production increased steadily. One enthusiastic participant has been Charles Rutto, 1 38-year-old farmer with six children. He has grown, sorghum for five years, about five acres on his own land and five acres on rented land. He believes the region is on its way to adequate food security because of KARI/Mtama-1 sorghum. In more homes, it is mixed with beans to make a delicious and popular meal. Mr. Rutto and other farmers have formed cooperative, the EMKWEN Farmers Society, which provides for weighing, storage, purchase of sacks, and transportation. Another of the regional sorghum growers was Wilson Kipng'ok, recognised as an outstanding manager of his crop. His farm has been the site of field days to demonstrate proper management methods, including timely planting, fertilisation and weeding, and intercropping with cowpeas. He uses an ox plough to make furrows for soil and water conservation.

KARI has successfully demonstrated the singular qualities of KARI/Matama-1 in making composite flour (with finger millet, Pearl Millet, and wheat) to various millers in the country, including KEN-UJI products in Embu District. Mr. Stephen Marete of KEN-UJI now buys sorghum from farmers in large quantities (500 bags and above), mainly in Tharaka Nithi District, for milling.
Birds cause major losses to sorghum growers in many areas. One-way farmers scare birds is to put stones into tin cans, then tie the cans to pots around the edges of the field. The cans are linked by a string which can be pulled to cause a clatter.
KARI's research centres at Perkerra, Katumani, Kisii, Embu and Kakamega work closely with the sorghum-growing groups in their regions. Through the Centres, KARI is intent on introducing KARI/Matama-1 to more farmers who could benefit from it. The crop performs well in areas between 50 and 1700 metres above sea level, and which receive seasonal rainfall of 300 mm and above. Areas recommended for cultivation of KARI/Mtama-1 include Eastern, Western Nyanza and Rift Valley (Baringo, Turkana, West Pokot, Nakuru) and parts of North-Eastern Provinces. KARI has bought seed from farmers and distributed it to other research centres, District Agricultural Officers and other groups.
FINGER MILLET MAKES STRONG COMEBACK

Finger millet, a crop that has long been grown in Africa, is making a strong comeback in Kenya. Its ability to grow under conditions of limited rainfall makes it a good addition to the list of crops that can improve food security in the country.
Demand for finger millet seed was high for the 1996 planting seasons. A Kenya Seed Company store in Kakamega sold several times what it did a year earlier. A store official said some farmers were turning to finger millet because of the previous year's poor maize crop. Some of the seed went to young farmers and secondary schools for projects. Finger millet has received increased attention from KARI scientists. At KARI's Kakamega regional Research Centre, finger millet breeding is a major programme, more than 3,000 lines from various sources have been screened at the Centre. From these selections, KARI has released several varieties, including the popular P224 and KAT/FM-1, to Kenya Seed Company for multiplication.
Like sorghum, finger millet often grows and yields satisfactorily where maize fails. Although grown to a lesser extent than sorghum, finger millet is quite nutritious and high in calcium. It is being tried as baby food, and even upper-income families are adopting it. Ugali and uji made from finger millet flour are becoming popular countrywide.

The Centre is working to develop resistant to several pests that affect finger millet, including the striga weed and the fly that attacks the early shoot. Improved techniques for planting, fertilisation and management have been published by KARI.
Researchers are also working to develop better varieties of Pearl Millet, which ahs the advantage of maturing early, thus often escaping dry periods.

Acknowledgement

The work reported here was supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) under KARI's National Agricultural Research Project (NARP).

Editor: Dr. J. O. Mugah
Layout: Ms. Grace Kimani
Fore more info.
Director, KARI
P. O. Box 57811
Nairobi, Kenya
Tel. 254-02-583301-20