E-Malt.com News article: Kenya: Brewers’ demand for sorghum growing like a house on fire

Sorghum farmers in Kenya’s drought-ravaged districts are set for big fortunes as brewers’ demand for the grain grows, The Nation posted on April, 26.

Regional brewing giant East African Breweries Ltd (EABL) is buying the crop for making beer and this fact has sparked a price surge, at one time hitting Sh28 a kilo for the white variety, also known as gaddam sorghum. However, intervention by the Ministry of Agriculture has since stabilised prices at Sh17 a kilo.

EABL’s interest in the crop is driven by its desire to shift from the more expensive barley that is used to brew malt beer. The brewer pays farmers instantly for their deliveries.

On the brewing scene, several organisations have joined hands to promote sorghum for making beer. East African Malting Ltd (EAML), a wholly-owned subsidiary of EABL, has partnered with Africa Harvest, an NGO, Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (Kari) and Equity Bank to promote the growing of sorghum.

Equity Bank is offering low interest loans to farmers to buy seeds and farm inputs while Africa Harvest and Kari are providing the technical support to ensure the best quality grains are produced for consumption by EAML. Equity Bank CEO James Mwangi last year announced the establishment of a Sh10 million revolving fund for farmers to facilitate the enterprise.

David Miano, a senior researcher with Kari says: “Due to climate change, it is becoming more difficult to grow maize in arid areas hence the need to adopt drought-resistant crops like sorghum.” For many years, brewing firms have been reluctant to use sorghum because they were not sure whether farmers could guarantee consistent supply.

Barley, the grain used to brew most beer, grows best in countries with cooler climates but its skyrocketing price due to a strong global demand and the high shipping costs have made beer increasingly expensive. This is what is driving the EABL initiative to replace barley with sorghum.

EAML requires more than 60,000 tonnes of barley every year for making various beer brands. The firm intends to substitute three quarters of this with local sorghum. According to Ms Rose Mutuku of Smart Logistics, the firm hired by EAML to source the grain from farmers, there is a production deficit of 25,000 tonnes.

Ms Mutuku says EAML will still be forced to import gaddam sorghum this year from Tanzania but reckons that the situation will improve in the next seasons. Dr Rose Njeru, technology deployment director at Africa Harvest says: “We anticipate that the 13 tonnes of sorghum seed planted by November last year will be harvested and bulked by our farmers, bringing much-needed income into their pockets”.

Africa Harvest CEO Florence Wambugu expects better performance in the next growing season as the project picks up momentum. She says: “It is anticipated that with the good spirit of cooperation and teamwork between the various stakeholders, the region can satisfy the growing demand for sorghum grain.”

Local leaders have welcomed the initiative and called for revision of the country’s agricultural policies to tackle challenges in line with the prevailing economic realities.


28 April, 2010