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HORTIFAIR KIGANJO

FPEAK successfully kicked off the HORTIFAIR KENYA program of events for 2008 with the Central Province event on the 25th and 26th April. The theme of the trainings during the event was ‘Meeting Safety and Sanitary Standards in Horticultural Production’. The 2 day training focused on farm and production safety (use of chemicals) and handling hygiene as important aspects of Good Agricultural Practice. The need for this training has been brought about by the ever increasing consumer safety standards on horticultural produce worldwide. With increased consumer awareness on food safety issues, there is more pressure on farmers to demonstrate that their production methods do not put end-consumers and the environment at any risk of contamination. Close to 2000 farmers and visitors over the two days benefited from the wealth of information and contacts with the 35 exhibitors, among them input suppliers, trainers, marketers, government agencies and other horticultural stakeholders.  

Among the specific objectives of Hortifair Central Kenya 2008, was to review the status of the Kenyan Horticultural industry, in the wake of the recently ended civil unrest following the general elections of December last year. This unfortunate period in our history saw a downturn in the economy, with the agricultural sector bearing the brunt.

Happily, Horticulture in Central Kenya, and indeed the whole country, has remained a strong economic activity, despite several challenges. This is evidenced by the continued growth of over 20%, and the estimated employment of over 2 million Kenyans. Last year, the industry realized over 60 billion in foreign exchange, making it Kenya’s leading industry today, and it is set to grow more in the coming year. The sector is however burdened with high input costs, and access to some of its traditional markets.

 Hortifair Central Kenya was kindly presided over by the Assistant Minister for Agriculture Honourable Gideon Ndambuki who was on his first official duty since the forming of the Coalition Cabinet. This show of official support was a major morale booster to the industry stakeholders, who considered the ministers pledges on several policy issues, as a godsend.

The massive response to the trainings is perhaps the biggest lesson we learnt at Hortifair Central Kenya 2008! Our capacity was overstretched as we registered a record 160 farmers, attending the training. These received qualified instruction on how to produce under international standards of hygiene. We apologize to those who may have been left out, but assure all that this was just the beginning of a country wide campaign of trainings, in our efforts to enhance the competitiveness of Kenyan Produce on the world market.

Hortifair Central Kenya 2008 is organized by Fresh Produce Exporters Association of Kenya (FPEAK), working together with Kenya Flower Council under the Kenya Horticultural Council (KHC), in conjunction with the Ministry of Agriculture and the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KeBS) with part- funding from DANIDA-Private Sector Development Strategy (PSDS) program within the Ministry of Trade.

The next HORTIFIAR KENYA event will be announced soon. Watch this space.

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NEXT EVENTS:

HORTIFAIR PROGRAM 2008

July 24-25, Meru
Sept 25-26, Coast region (location to be confirmed)
November 27-28, Bungoma

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