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 thought it should be a joke when he was told he could water his drought-hit crops more inexpensively, cleanly and efficiently using a pump fuelled by cotton waste.<br>
 <br>"Who could believe it's possible to make a fuel better than diesel from cotton seeds? I didn't!" laughed Mathoka, crouching down to check the watermelons on his 10-acre (four-hectare) shared plot in Ituri town in Kenya's southeast Kitui county.<br>
 <br>"But it works," he said, strolling over to a nearby tree and plucking a big green pawpaw. "Irrigation with this [biodiesel](https://www.energy-xprt.com/companies/mission-newenergy-limited-36048) water pump has helped me get higher yields, specifically throughout drought periods."<br>
 <br>Mathoka said his incomes had doubled in the two years he has been pumping water using biodiesel, which is both more efficient and 20 shillings ($0.20) per litre cheaper than routine diesel.<br>
 <br>The [biodiesel](https://stocktwits.com/symbol/MNEL) he is using is not just great news for him - it is likewise good news for the world.<br>
 <br>Unlike a lot of biofuels, which are stemmed from crops such as maize, sugarcane, soybean, rapeseed and [jatropha curcas](https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-178469/company/), it is made from a byproduct of the [cotton-making procedure](https://www.businessnews.com.au/Company/Mission-NewEnergy).<br>
 <br>That means that in addition to being cleaner and less expensive than regular fuel, it is more sustainable than other biofuels due to the fact that no additional land is needed to produce it.<br>
 <br>From Brazil to Indonesia, the rush to [cultivate biofuel](https://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/ASX:MBT/Mission-NewEnergy-Ltd) crops has driven forest communities off their land and pressed farmers to change from crops-for-food to more rewarding crops-for-fuel - intensifying food scarcities.<br>
 <br>"Our biodiesel comes from squashing cotton seeds left over as waste after ginning - the procedure of separating the seeds from raw cotton," stated Taher Zavery, managing director of Zaynagro Industries Ltd, the Kitui-based business producing the [biodiesel](https://biodieselmagazine.com/articles/felda-global-buys-missions-kuantan-port-plant-for-11-5-million-9053).<br>
 <br>"We began producing and using it to power our cotton ginning factory in 2011. With increased production, we now utilize it for our trucks, sell it to the United Nations to run a few of their buses - and likewise to regional farmers for watering."<br>
 <br>More than 1,200 farmers in Kitui have actually so far bought [biodiesel](https://www.intelligentinvestor.com.au/shares/asx-mbt/mission-newenergy-limited/share-price) pumps for watering as part of an initiative launched by Zaynagro in 2015, stated Zavery.<br>
 <br>DRY RIVER BEDS<br>
 <br>Climate modification is taking a toll across east Africa and increasingly erratic weather condition is becoming commonplace in countries such as Kenya, Somalia, Uganda and Ethiopia, leading to lower rainfall.<br>
 <br>The repeating [dry spells](https://www.businessnews.com.au/Company/Mission-NewEnergy) are destroying crops and pastures and are starving animals - pushing millions of people in the Horn of Africa to the edge of severe hunger.<br>
 <br>The number of [Kenyans](https://forest500.org/rankings/companies/mission-newenergy-limited) in requirement of food aid in March surged by almost 70 percent over a period of 8 months to 1.1 million, mainly due to bad rains, according to federal government figures.<br>
 <br>With almost half Kenya's 47 [counties](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/) declared to have a serious lack of rain, [humanitarian companies](https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/ipos/overview?dealId=804419-65608) are alerting of increased cravings in the months ahead.<br>
 <br>"Only light rainfall is forecast through June ... and this is not anticipated to alleviate drought in affected locations of Kenya and Somalia," stated the Famine Early Warning Systems Network in its newest report.<br>
 <br>"Well below-average crop production, poor animals body conditions, and increased local food costs are anticipated, which will minimize bad households' access to food."<br>
 <br>In Kitui's Kyuso area, the signs are already [apparent](https://www.pinterest.com.au/missionnewenergy/).<br>
 <br>Rivers, water pans and dams are drying up as an outcome of the extended drought.<br>
 <br>Villagers suffer travelling longer distances - in some cases more than 10 km (6 miles) with their donkeys loaded with empty jerry cans searching for water.<br>
 <br>Small-scale farmers, the [majority](https://www.pinterest.com.au/missionnewenergy/) of whom are [reliant](https://www.abnnewswire.net/companies/en/31347/%E0%B8%9A%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%A9%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%97-Mission-NewEnergy-%E0%B8%88%E0%B8%B3%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%94.html/4) on rain-fed farming, talk about plans to offer their goats to make ends fulfill if the harvest is poor.<br>
 <br>[BATTLING DROUGHT](https://forest500.org/rankings/companies/mission-newenergy-limited) WITH BIODIESEL<br>
 <br>But not all Kitui's farmers are worried.<br>
 <br>A small however growing number are shedding their concern of dependence on the weather - and purchasing irrigation systems powered by Zaynagro's cotton seed biodiesel through a [pay-as-you-go scheme](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1463471/000165495419013063/R31.htm) launched more than 3 years earlier.<br>
 <br>Neighbouring farmers band together to purchase the irrigation system - which consists of the biodiesel pump, 12 metres of pipes and 10 litres of biodiesel - at [expenses](https://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/ASX:MBT/Mission-NewEnergy-Ltd) beginning from 32,000 shillings, depending on the size of the pump.<br>
 <br>The farmers make an initial payment, then pay interest-free regular monthly instalments till the overall is settled. They buy the biodiesel to run the pumps from Zaynagro at 80 shillings a litre.<br>
 <br>Farmer Alex Babu Kitheka, 39, said the biodiesel pump enabled him to irrigate a larger portion of his one-acre plot, where he grows a variety of vegetables consisting of maize, tomatoes, spinach and sweet potatoes.<br>
 <br>"With a diesel pump, maize yields were lower and I would get 15,000 shillings in 3 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.<br>
 <br>CIRCULAR ECONOMY<br>
 <br>Other farmers indicate the scheme as a major advantage in assisting improve their output.<br>
 <br>"The instalment scheme is excellent. Most farmers do not have the money and can not quickly get a loan to purchase a pump like this," said Maurice Kitheka Munyoki, 41, as he stood beside his blue [biodiesel](https://www.google.com/search?kgmid=/m/0cqd_rb) pump.<br>
 <br>"Having a scheme like this helps us a lot. Our yields are excellent which suggests we can pay off the expense of the pump slowly in little quantities, and have money left over to pay the school costs."<br>
 <br>Zaynagro's effort is still in its early stages, with couple of farmers having paid back the full expense of the pumps.<br>
 <br>But such [biofuel](https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-178469/company/) schemes are promising due to the fact that they produce a circular economy by turning waste to [biofuel](https://www.investing.com/equities/mission-newenergy-ltd-company-profile) for earnings, stated Sanjoy Sanyal, senior associate for Clean Energy  at the World Resources Institute.<br>
 <br>The simplicity of the model - user friendly, robust innovation, ensured supply of biodiesel combined with a pay-as-you-go scheme - could help amaze rural Africa, he said.<br>
 <br>"There is a mosaic of sustainable energy options in the world. The crucial issue is checking ideas and techniques in a collaborative style," said Sanyal.<br>
 <br>"Other cotton ginning factories in the region should try and gain from this experiment. Financial institutions need to begin experimenting with loans to groups of farmers. International donors and financiers 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, females's and LGBT+ rights, human trafficking, home rights and environment modification. Visit http://news.trust.org)<br>