commit c89e924dadb0a6096745aa5a8aab04a54a296cb7 Author: janix538870442 Date: Sat Jan 11 15:51:38 2025 -0800 Add Cotton Waste Biofuel Powers Farmers to Eliminate Drought In Kenya diff --git a/Cotton-Waste-Biofuel-Powers-Farmers-to-Eliminate-Drought-In-Kenya.md b/Cotton-Waste-Biofuel-Powers-Farmers-to-Eliminate-Drought-In-Kenya.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..8d62f14 --- /dev/null +++ b/Cotton-Waste-Biofuel-Powers-Farmers-to-Eliminate-Drought-In-Kenya.md @@ -0,0 +1,40 @@ +
By Nita Bhalla
+
KITUI, Kenya, June 6 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Kenyan farmer Abel Mutie Mathoka thought it should be a joke when he was informed he could water his drought-hit crops more cheaply, easily and effectively utilizing a pump sustained by cotton waste.
+
"Who could think it's possible to make a fuel much better than diesel from cotton seeds? I didn't!" chuckled Mathoka, bending down to check the watermelons on his 10-acre (four-hectare) shared plot in Ituri village in Kenya's southeast Kitui county.
+
"But it works," he said, strolling over to a close-by tree and plucking a big green pawpaw. "Irrigation with this biodiesel water pump has actually helped me get greater yields, particularly during dry spell periods."
+
Mathoka stated his incomes had doubled in the 2 years he has been pumping water [utilizing](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/) biodiesel, which is both more [efficient](https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/company/MNELF:US) and 20 shillings ($0.20) per litre cheaper than routine diesel.
+
The biodiesel he is utilizing is not just great news for him - it is also excellent news for the planet.
+
Unlike many biofuels, which are derived from crops such as maize, sugarcane, soybean, rapeseed and [jatropha](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159346/mission-newenergy-delivers-maiden-biodiesel-production-to-global-oil-major-24476.html), it is made from a byproduct of the cotton-making procedure.
+
That implies that as well as being cleaner and more affordable than regular fuel, it is more sustainable than other biofuels because no additional land is needed to produce it.
+
From Brazil to Indonesia, the rush to cultivate [biofuel](https://stocktwits.com/symbol/MNEL) crops has driven forest communities off their land and pushed farmers to change from crops-for-food to more rewarding crops-for-fuel - worsening food scarcities.
+
"Our [biodiesel](https://biodieselmagazine.com/articles/felda-global-buys-missions-kuantan-port-plant-for-11-5-million-9053) comes from crushing cotton seeds left over as waste after ginning - the procedure of separating the seeds from raw cotton," stated Taher Zavery, [handling director](https://www.intelligentinvestor.com.au/shares/asx-mbt/mission-newenergy-limited/share-price) of Zaynagro Industries Ltd, the Kitui-based company producing the [biodiesel](https://www.businessnews.com.au/Company/Mission-NewEnergy).
+
"We began producing and utilizing it to power our cotton ginning factory in 2011. With increased production, we now use it for our trucks, sell it to the United Nations to run some of their buses - and likewise to regional farmers for irrigation."
+
More than 1,200 [farmers](https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/company/MNELF:US) in Kitui have actually so far bought [biodiesel](https://www.investing.com/equities/mission-newenergy-ltd-company-profile) pumps for watering as part of an effort released by Zaynagro in 2015, stated Zavery.
+
DRY RIVER BEDS
+
[Climate modification](https://www.zoominfo.com/c/mission-newenergy/346542889) is taking a toll across east Africa and increasingly irregular weather is becoming commonplace in countries such as Kenya, Somalia, Uganda and Ethiopia, leading to lower rainfall.
+
The repeating droughts are ruining crops and pastures and are starving animals - pushing millions of individuals in the Horn of Africa to the verge of extreme appetite.
+
The variety of Kenyans in requirement of food aid in March rose by nearly 70 percent over a period of 8 months to 1.1 million, mostly due to poor rains, according to federal government figures.
+
With almost half Kenya's 47 counties stated to have a serious scarcity of rain, humanitarian companies are alerting of increased hunger in the months ahead.
+
"Only light rains is anticipated through June ... and this is not expected to ease dry spell in affected locations of Kenya and Somalia," said the Famine Early [Warning Systems](https://www.pinterest.com.au/missionnewenergy/) Network in its most current report.
+
"Well below-average crop production, poor livestock body conditions, and increased regional food costs are expected, which will decrease poor homes' access to food."
+
In Kitui's Kyuso location, the indications are already obvious.
+
Rivers, water pans and dams are drying up as an outcome of the prolonged dry spell.
+
Villagers complain of trekking longer distances - often more than 10 km (6 miles) with their [donkeys loaded](https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/company/MNELF:US) with empty jerry cans searching for water.
+
Small-scale farmers, most of whom are dependent on [rain-fed](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1463471/000165495419013063/R31.htm) agriculture, talk about strategies to sell their goats to make ends satisfy if the harvest is bad.
+
BATTLING DROUGHT WITH [BIODIESEL](https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/ipos/overview?dealId=804419-65608)
+
But not all Kitui's farmers are fretted.
+
A little but growing number are shedding their problem of dependence on the weather - and investing in irrigation systems powered by Zaynagro's cotton seed biodiesel through a pay-as-you-go scheme released more than 3 years back.
+
Neighbouring farmers band together to invest in the watering system - which includes the pump, 12 metres of pipes and 10 litres of biodiesel - at expenses beginning with 32,000 shillings, [depending](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159352/mission-newenergy-debt-free-focused-on-biofuel-joint-venture-60797.html) on the size of the pump.
+
The farmers make a preliminary payment, then pay interest-free monthly instalments till the overall is paid off. They purchase the [biodiesel](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/mission-newenergy) to run the pumps from Zaynagro at 80 shillings a litre.
+
Farmer Alex Babu Kitheka, 39, stated the biodiesel pump permitted him to irrigate a larger portion of his one-acre plot, where he grows a variety of veggies including maize, tomatoes, spinach and sweet potatoes.
+
"With a diesel pump, maize yields were lower and I would get 15,000 shillings in three months. With the [biodiesel](https://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/ASX:MBT/Mission-NewEnergy-Ltd) pump, I can earn 45,000 shillings," said Alex Babu Kitheka, standing near his plot in Ilangilo town, 40 km (25 miles) from Kitui town.
+
CIRCULAR ECONOMY
+
Other farmers indicate the scheme as a major benefit in helping improve their output.
+
"The instalment scheme is excellent. Most farmers don't have the cash and can not quickly get a loan to purchase a pump like this," stated Maurice Kitheka Munyoki, 41, as he stood next to his blue [biodiesel](https://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/ASX:MBT/Mission-NewEnergy-Ltd) pump.
+
"Having a scheme like this helps us a lot. Our yields are good which implies we can settle the expense of the pump gradually in percentages, and have money left over to pay the school costs."
+
Zaynagro's initiative is still in its early phases, with few farmers having repaid the full expense of the pumps.
+
But such [biofuel](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1463471/000165495419013063/R31.htm) schemes are promising because they create a circular economy by turning waste to [biofuel](https://www.energy-xprt.com/companies/mission-newenergy-limited-36048) for profit, stated Sanjoy Sanyal, senior partner for Clean Energy Finance at the World Resources Institute.
+
The simplicity of the model - user friendly, robust technology, ensured supply of biodiesel integrated with a pay-as-you-go scheme - might assist amaze rural Africa, he said.
+
"There is a mosaic of sustainable energy alternatives on the planet. The crucial issue is evaluating concepts and methods in a collective style," said Sanyal.
+
"Other cotton ginning factories in the area need to attempt and discover from this experiment. Financial organizations need to start try out loans to groups of farmers. International donors and investors need to support experimentation."
+
($1 = 101.3000 Kenyan shillings) ([Reporting](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) 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, residential or commercial property rights and environment change. Visit http://news.trust.org)
\ No newline at end of file