Horticulture nets Kenya €2.48 billion

The value of horticulture production rose 41 percent last year compared with 2017 on account of good prices. Market data from the Horticulture Department indicates overall sales rose from Sh216 billion in 2016 to Sh305 billion last year (€1.75 to 2.48 bln).

The total value of horticultural produce exported in 2017 increased from Sh101.5 billion in 2016 to Sh115 billion last year (€824 to 934 mln).

“The value of domestic horticulture production has been growing over the years as is evidenced by the figures,” says Okesegere Ojepat, chief executive officer of the Fresh Produce Consortium (FPC) of Kenya.

In 2016 the value of flowers, fruits and vegetables increased by 13, 12 and 12 percent respectively as compared to 2015. Fruits and vegetables earned €73 mln and €195 mln, on export volumes of 56,945 and 87,240 tons respectively in 2017.

Ojepat said cut flowers accounted for 70 percent of the earnings, with the rest coming from fresh fruit and vegetables. Fresh produce exports are a key source of hard currency for the East African economy, along with tourism, cash sent home by Kenyans abroad and coffee and tea exports. Businessdailyafrica.com quoted Ojepat as saying the sector had shown resilience in the face of a drought, a drawn-out presidential election and sluggish private sector credit which curbed Kenya’s economic expansion last year.

Farming is the biggest sector in Kenya’s economy, accounting for about 30 percent of annual output and employing more than half of the population, especially in the rural areas.